The Heroes of Old
by BLAMHOUSE
Summary: Achilles, Hercules, Odysseus, Theseus, Perseus, and others are brought back from the dead by the gods in order to aid The Argo II in retaking Death's Doors. Will the original Heroes of Olympus aid the Modern Heroes or lead them to certain doom?
1. The Bargain

**What's up guys, Blamhouse here coming at you with his first story. This story is now complete and the sequel is on the way. So, here's my story, please review, enjoy, see in the sequel, and thank you.**

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS NOR DO I OWN THE HEROES OF OLYMPUS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO RICK RIORDAN **

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><p>"What are your reasons to bring us together, God of Death?" asked Perseus impatiently.<p>

"Theres a job that's needs to be done." Thanatos told him.

"Naturally," said Hercules.

"And you expect us to help the Olympians...again? People say gods don't age but the loss of sanity…" Odysseus remarked. "Let me guess, you need us to fetch you something again?"

"Or maybe our delightful mothers and fathers messed up the world really bad this time, how could they, and now they need us to clean up the mess." Theseus chimed in.

Another hero would make a joke at the god's incompetence and then another, or someone else would say something sarcastic. The heroes gathered were the greatest in history and unfortunately the wittiest as well. There was Hercules the Strong, Theseus the Intellect, Odysseus the Wise, Perseus the Gorgon Slayer, Achilles the Warrior, Bellerophon the Master, Jason the Argonaut, and Leonidas the Mighty.

Thanatos allowed them to continue whining for a few minutes longer before he finally cut in. "Are you wenches finished?"

"Not quiet," Odysseus added. "The gods are idiots," he burst into laughter at his own remark. He noticed no one else was laughing and his moment of hysteria died out awkwardly. "All right, now I'm done."

If Thanatos wasn't wearing his hood they wold have seen him roll his eyes. "As you all may have heard, my beautiful great grandmother is waking from her slumber and decided to get her very capable giant sons to chain me up. My leave of absence allowed that very thin line that has kept the dead and living separate for centuries to begin to crumble. Souls escaped and monster could not die. On top of all that Gaea decided it would only be right that she cracked my doors wide open allowing her to pick and choose any soul she wanted to walk the mortal Earth again."

"Why would this concern us Death God? We're dead. Why do we care?" Jason asked scornfully.

"That's a good question Jason but I was getting to that. While I was chained up Camp Jupiter was under siege by the giant, Polybotes and his fairly large army of hungry monsters. Camp Jupiter had no chance to defeat them in less I was freed so I would be able to make monsters stay dead when they got killed. In hopeful defense, Camp Jupiter mandated a rescue mission in order to save me before they go wiped out. Long story short, I was freed from my icy imprisonment and the heroes who saved me saved the camp in the process. This is all well and good but there is still a mountain of problems to deal with."

"Naturally," Hercules said for the second time. "We aren't your errand boys. Why don't you use the your new demigods you keep on giving birth to?"

"Oh, no! The task we have in store for you isn't a simple errand my dear dead friend. I would call this more of opportunity." Thanatos told him.

"And what would that be?" Bellerophon asked.

"Gaea has become a needle in the gods' sides'. First she kidnapped Hera, then me, raised her sons from the dead, killed some demigods, and now Gaea controls my doors and is defending them with a massive army. I can't get them closed by myself because she's to powerful and I may be immortal but the army is just way to large. They would stop me hundreds of miles before I even reached my doors. I am in no mood to be chained up again. Besides, Heroes are the one who function in the mortal realm."

"Oh, it looks like the big bad God of Death need us puny mortals help." Odysseus asked in a mocking tone and Thanatos ignored him.

"If I don't close them-if WE don't close-she can allow anyone from the underworld to comeback. She has already done this with Midas, Otrera, Phineas, and many more. I fear soon it will be many others who are much worse."

"That's...that's an abomination, no one gets to bring people back to life, that isn't fair," Achilles said in his usual tired voice finally speaking up.

"Any other time you would be right; death isn't fair." Thanatos grinned under his hood. "However, I can make it fair….And that is why I'm bringing you all back to life. Olympus's finest raised from the dead. Oh, they would be telling this one to their grandchildren for centuries to come."

"What if we refuse?" Odysseus asked defiantly.

"We can if we want," said Theseus, "but the gods have something to offer us, something we can't refuse."

"Naturally," Hercules said a third time.

"Precisely, If you help us, I'm sure Lord Hades and I can work out something that would give you what you couldn't have in your past life."

"As a Spartan my lord, no tribute is necessary in order for me to serve the gods," said Leonidas.

"Oh, give me a break," Odysseus rolled his eyes. "Aren't you tired of being a puppet Leonidas? Besides what could you give us that we don't already have Thanatos?"

"Exactly, we all live in the Isles of the Blessed. We have everything we need. What we imagine we get," Perseus added.

"Exactly, everything here is just an apparition an allusion, not real!" Thanatos explained excitedly. "The people who surround you in this paradise are just mere imitations of the real things. I can give you your real queen Perseus, or your family Odysseus, or your father Theseus, or you wife Jason!"

Thanatos paused as he looked into their eyes. He had them where he wanted now. He merely letting his words settle. "Shall I continue?" They all shook their heads understandingly. "I can allow the people that you loved and cared about so much when you were alive, be with you forever, right here in the Isles of the Blessed, for eternity, but only if you help me.

"Do you swear on the River Styx to keep your end of the deal?" Hercules asked with a new twinkle in his eyes as he thought of his children.

Thanatos looked them all in their eyes, peering into their souls. "I swear. Now do you?"

"Their just using us again," Perseus warned the others in a sing-song voice.

"Of course they are, that's all they ever do, but they have something we want this time. Something we wanted even more than we did when we were alive." Achilles responded. "I swear."

The rest were about to do the same but Jason raised his hand.

"Wait, before I swear I want to hear the rest of the gods as well." Jason added.

The others nodded their agreement.

Thanatos shook his head and sighed. "Fine, but It takes a lot of time and resources to call them all down her in person. I'll see what I can do."

He rummaged around in his cloak till he pulled out what he was looking for. It was rectangular mirror object that the dead heroes recognized as the Ipad. The modern and current mortals living on the surface world were infatuated with these devices.

"Ah ha, here we go Mt. Olympus," he said as he tapped a finger on the screen and then started to speak with it. "Yeah...I'm sorry but they wanted all of you...okay...Hermes just put them all on...everybody?...I guess the minor gods too. All right, okay."

Thanatos then diverted his attention back to the heroes, "Here!"

Thanatos held up the Ipad so it faced the dead heroes. On the screen it showed at least a couple dozen little boxes with different faces on it. They recognized Ares, Apollo, Artemis, Zeus, even Hera, and so on. There, upon the face of an Ipad, was every single Olympian, and they were all bickering.

"This better be worth it Hades," Zeus complained.

"Worth more than your wife," Hades retorted.

Hera gasped, "You dare?"

The rest of the faces started shouting and joined the argument. They called each other names, throughout insults, spat out slanders, and some even resorted to making rude gestures.

"Hey!" Thanatos shouted interrupting them. "HEY, can we do this already?"

"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the coffin," grumbled Apollo.

"You can say that again," Poseidon agreed.

Thanatos rolled his eyes hidden behind the cowl of his hood and shot them a literal death glare.

The gods rollers their eyes back, sighed in exasperation, and in unison they swore:

"We, the Olympians, swear on the River Styx to honor our end of the deal which entitles the code named, 'Heroes of Old,' to be reunited with their loved ones in the Underworld."

"Now your turn," Thanatos nodded toward the heroes.

In unison the Heroes of Old swore:

"I, *insert name*, swear on the River Styx to uphold my end of the bargain. We will shut Death's Doors. "

"Finally," a voice exclaimed from the Ipad. It sounded like Hera. "We can get on with our lives!"

"Fantastic!" Thanatos said sarcastically as he hastily pressed a button on the Ipad's screen causing it to go black and then placing back in his cloak.

"Hercules, Leonidas and thirty of your Spartan warriors, Theseus, Perseus, Odysseus, Jason, Bellerophon, and Achilles: With the permission from Lord Hades himself, I hereby allow you, Olympus's greatest heroes, to walk in the land of the living….Again."

They all nodded glumly except for the obedient Leonidas and the Spartans who chanted in pride. The heroes always hated serving the gods to begin with and why would they start to enjoy it now? This time was different though. They had something really worth fighting for at the end of this deal. If-a very large one for that matter-IF they got the job done they would get to see the beautiful faces of their wives or their children or their parents.

"I hope you guys like kids because its time to visit your modern counterparts." Thanatos cheerily said as he snapped his fingers.

They began to float toward upwards, past the artificial Underworld skies, they phased through the Earth's curst, came out of the sea floor, burst through the surface of the ocean, and up into the real world, leaving the Underworld behind them. Each hero had the feeling of impending doom lodged in their guts and the premonition they would be back in the Underworld sooner that they would like.

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><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	2. Unity

They arrived at Camp Jupiter at midday when the sun was highest in the sky. The congregation paused in front of narrow, dark river that squiggled through the valley. The rays of Apollo reflected playfully across the ripples of the river. At first glance the valley seemed almost at peace but with the trained eye of war veterans, the heroes could make out the signs of battle. Dust heaps, remains of monsters, were scattered across the fields, stray arrows and disarmed weapons littered the grounds, and in the distance were heaps of rubble were great structures once stood.

"What year are we?" Theseus, the youngest, asked.

"2011," the death god answered. "The day after Polybotes invaded this camp to be exact."

Odysseus whistled in awe. It had been almost four-thousand years since any of them had walked the Earth. The group of ancient heroes did full three-sixties as they consumed the scenery around them and absorbed the enormity of their situation. They were brought back to life and even maybe the some of first souls, probably the only ones. Some of the heroes even caressed their faces and examined their skin with microscopic precision. It had been centuries since they actually felt their hearts beating in their chest, the real sun beating upon their faces, and the weight of gravity pulling them down. They were mortals once again and they didn't know wether to be elated or repulsed.

Thanatos gave them a few moments to revel in their humanity before speaking. "We walk from here," he said, "but before we continue on I give you back the possessions you owned on the day of your deaths."

Thanatos reached inside the shadows of his never ending cloak and began removing objects. He removed objects left and right distributing them to the correct owners. The spartans regained their armor, swords, spears, and shields. Achilles grasped his Pelean spear, his shield, and armor. Bellerophon was handed his bow and spear and at the sound of his whistle the winged horse, Pegasus, materialized from the Heavens and landed gracefully beside his master. Jason strapped on his armor and sheathed his sword; Odysseus reclaimed his massive long bow; Theseus repossessed his cudgel and sword while strapping his shield across his back. Perseus had a whole treasure trove of items: he gathered his adamantine sword, his armor, his duplicated helm of invisibility, his Medusa's head sack that he wore on his belt, and his Hermes Boots. Hercules donned his Nemean Lion Armor and hefted up his mammoth sized club.

When Thanatos deemed everyone was ready he nodded to the Little Tiber, "Across the river."

The troop of men made there way to the river bank and stood at it's shores warily. Hesitantly Odysseus made the first step and dunked his foot into the current. Immediately he reeled his foot out of the water. Not because of the temperature but the pure power that the river emitted causing Odysseus to feel a jolt flow up his leg. Odysseus looked up to the Death God and shook his head.

"What, is the little pussy cat afraid of taking a bath?" Thanatos asked almost chuckling. "It's just water. Okay I lied a little. It has a slight connection to the River Styx but it's nothing lethal. It's been rumored the waters of this very river can take away some magical curses and wash away sins," he paused and peered into Achilles's soul, "but those are merely rumors."

Odysseus shook his head in disgust once more but eventually he swallowed his pride and fear and stepped into the depths of the unknown. One by one wading through the chilling water. After a brief ice bath they were all standing on the other side, all except for one. The others all waited on the opposite side as the watched Achilles who was looking dreamily into the water. If what Thanatos was saying was true then all Achilles had to do was take one step and his curse would be lifted forever. Although he had been dead for the last 3000 years he still felt the weight of it bearing down on his shoulders even in the Underworld. Now that he was alive again it was even worse. All he had to do was step into the current and it would wash away the heavy burden but then again he wouldn't be invincible. He would once again be a mere human being that instead of only worrying about a minuscule part of his body he would have to worry about protecting the whole thing. For a few minutes he contemplated the pros and cons of the situations but came to the conclusion that he was dead already and had been for centuries. If he were to die, so be it, and if he didn't take the step forward he wouldn't get to humiliate the gods and earn his prize.

Confidently, Achilles stepped forward and plunged into the Little Tiber. Pain seared through his entire body. It felt as if his veins pumped fire and his skin was being burnt away with acid. The pain was the worse in his heel. Thankfully the torment lasted for a few moments before he was able to make his way to the opposite shore and climb out of the frigid water. Once out of the water, standing dripping wet, and freezing he still couldn't shake off a new feeling that he had never enjoyed before; freedom. He was finally free. Free from the grips of failure, his mistakes, his parents expectations, and his entitlement to civilization. Achilles felt like a new person and he felt that he was starting a new life. He was given a second chance and he wasn't going to waste it. He looked back at the river once more, made a silent thanks, and joined his fellow heroes as they continued onward.

"I don't like this, things are changing too quickly." Theseus murmured to himself after watching Achilles climb out of the river.

The large group trudged their way past the empty mess hall, the barracks, through the Fields of Mars, until they finally reached the main city. Even from where the group stood, the outskirts, the group could make-out the giant warship in the center of the forum that was surrounded by the whole camp. All the campers had their weapons at drawn and stood at ready as if the warship was Pandora's Box or a ticking time bomb waiting to be detonated. Would it offer friendship or was it another Trojan Horse?

"Is that what it think it is?" Jason asked in disbelief and awe.

Thanatos knew what he was thinking. "Your eyes do not deceive you but you are only half correct my Argonaut. That is Argo II, the re-imagining of the original. Magnificent isn't she? Instead floating in the water like its predecessor, it fly across the sky like an eagle," Thanatos said in wonderment. "That son of Hephaestus has a lot of talent…the future, this present, it's amazing is it not?"

"Certainly," Jason agreed. The similarities between the Argo and Argo II were uncanny with the exception that the Argo II had few other added features in which Jason had no comprehension of their exact functions.

"The future-I mean present-it's strange," Hercules put in.

The others nodded their agreement. They all had been dead for 3000 years or more and today they were ripped from their "ancient Greek and Roman" mindset and brought to this modern world. Sure, the Heroes of Old were aware of the events that happened in the world above them as they existed in the Underworld but today was their actual first up close experience with the things they could only imagine. They saw their very first automobiles, skyscrapers, and Steve Jobs products. Thanatos tried to explain modern society as best as he could in as little time but still the resurrected heroes thought the future was even more terrifying than a date with Echidna.

"All of you go to the mess hall and conceal yourselves out of sight," Thanatos ordered. "I'm going to introduce you one by one when they have their Feast of Fortuna. They missed it yesterday so they'll try to do it today and even more so now because they have unexpected company."

"Someone will definitely see us," Theseus pointed.

"Oh right," Thanatos said face palming himself before snapping his fingers. "Now, you're invisible."

The heroes looked down at their still visible bodies before looking back up at the Death God and giving him incredulous looks.

Thanatos sighed. "I altered the Mist you nitwits! Only I can see you. You will only be revealed when I will allow it. It's a perk you get being the lieutenant of Hades, you know?"

Perseus shook his head, "No, we don't know."

"What ever, I'll be back."

"How long will that be?" Bellerophon asked.

"A few hours," Thanatos told them.

"No," all the heroes replied in unison.

"Are we forgetting the arrangement we made?" Thanatos asked referring to the deal they made which essentially made them the gods' slaves.

The heroes sighed in defeat and nodded in obedience to the bargain.

"You are going to remain hidden and wait for me to return. Don't touch anything, don't speak to anyone, and don't break anything. Understand?" He waited for the heroes to nod before continuing. "I'll see you in a couple of hours," he ordered.

"What are we supposed to do till then?" Odysseus questioned.

"Keep your mouths' shut," and with the snap of his fingers, Thanatos was gone.

"That one has spent too much time at the theatre," said Achilles.

"That one is needed to be wary of," concluded Hercules.

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><p>Thanatos observed the odd spectacle below him from the top of the Senate House. He arrived just on time to see the Camp Half-Blood campers disembark from Argo II. A giant drawbridge like door swung open from the side of the Argo II's hull creating a runway for people and materials to be offloaded from the ship. A congregation of Greek delegates marched proudly from the ship. First to get off was a tall blonde girl with stormy grey eyes who was accompanied by a satyr and a centaur. Then they were followed by a blonde boy, a Native American girl, and a mexican Santa Clause elf. The next who followed where the Hunters of Artemis, and then the cabins by order of alphabet: Aphrodite, Ares, Athena and so on. When all the passengers had finally unloaded they stood at attention facing the Romans apprehensively.<p>

The two opposing groups-the Greeks and Romans-looked at each other in awkward silence. The tension caused by the atmosphere made Thanatos feel as if he was watching two mastiffs play tug-of-war over a piece of steak. The whole situation was a giant rubber band being stretched to it's breaking point. Just before the two sides broke out into an all out battle, Percy Jackson decided to be the mediator and step forward and tried to get the two sides get to know each other a bit. The young demigod spouted out amusing claims that made Thanatos grin. Then Jason Grace stepped forward to try and offer some assistance. They made some introductions and then the black haired girl with her silver and gold dogs, who Thanatos believed to be Reyna, stepped forward. Then the stormy eyed blonde did the same and more introductions were made. Like a sheep the centaur started forward and began spouting off words such as "peace," and "unity," and "the fate of the world," bla, bla, bla. Thanatos didn't really care about the specifics he just wanted them to make their peace so he could do his damn job. This wasn't even his true job which caused him to be more irritated with both groups. The task that Hera had assigned him was well out his pay grade. Then out of know where Lupa and her wolves showed up which surprised everybody and made all the Romans get down on one knee. The Greeks didn't kneel which made the Romans even more dubious about the Greeks. More things were said by both sides in order to avoid conflict. Thanatos prayed that this wouldn't lead to another war because he had just finished reaping the last battle and he didn't feel like delivering the death speech to more souls again.

Then Percy Jackson stepped up onto a nearby fountain to give himself a high posture and began rather cliche speech. In speech paraphrased in Thanatos's words: "My friends-may it be Greek or Roman-the Gods have gathered us here today in hopes for us to work together and to defeat a common enemy. If we don't work together civilization will be lost." Then Jason stepped in who said essentially the same thing as Percy and then Chiron, then Lupa, then Annabeth, then Thalia, then Reyna, and so on. They all seemed to be saying the same exact thing for the past hour and a half; "why can't we be friends?" Thanatos counted his yawns and couldn't recall how many times he rolled his eyes before what he wanted to hear and see was said and done.

There was a silence and then two twins on the Greek side from Hermes cabin cheered, "Yeah Percy!" The greek side started to cheer which caused them to chant: "Allies, Allies, Allies!" and then reluctantly the Roman side joined in. Hera was actually right. Her precious heroes managed to actually pull off the impossible.

But then a scrawny kid that Thanatos recognized as Octavian took his turn to exercise his perception of the First Amendment. He began to spout off some stupid stuff that just made him look paranoid and power hungry. At first a few people considered what he said but then Lupa stepped forward and crushed his arguments utterly.

He stormed off out the city shouting "You'll see that I'm right!" That got everybody cheering louder than before. So the two sides did have common enemy but more closer to home than they thought.

Hazel Levesque made a comment about Octavian meaning well or something similar, playing the nice-girl card, Thanatos didn't really care and neither did everyone else because she was drowned out by cheers.

"Finally!" said Reyna, "Welcome friends of Greece. We are happy to have you as guest in our Camp. Tonight we will have a magnificent feast. Please take your time to look around our City and make yourselves at home."

The two sides collided together and for the first time in history it wasn't in combat. Percy rushed to Annabeth and pulled her into a long passionate kiss on her lips. Others shook hands in the act of friendship, and those who saw familiar faces embraced. Tyson the cyclops crushed everyone in sight with bear hugs, The Hunters and the Amazons seemed to take a liking to each other, and the Ares and Athena children seemed extremely impressed by how the Romans ran things. The crowd dispersed as some went to look around the city, others showed off fighting moves and weapons, and some traded stories and made introductions, and some took a tour of Argo II.

Thanatos spotted Chiron by himself and swooped down to intercept him. He tailed Chiron for a few moments waiting for the right moment to talk to him. His waiting time was protracted and he had to hide behind in an alley because the snot nosed Percy Jackson had to talk to him. Eventually the kid left and Thanatos found his opening.

"Pssst… psst…. Chiron."

Chiron continued trotting on obliviously causing Thanatos to roll his eyes.

"Chiron you stupid centaur!"

Chiron turned and his eyes grew big. "Lord Than-" Chiron began but was cut off by the God of Death.

"-Get over here Chiron. Discreetly please."

"Lord Thanatos how may I be of service?" Chiron asked happily.

"I was wondering if you could do a little favor for me," Thanatos said slyly.

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><p>The mess hall was jammed pack with demigods, veterans, lares, satyrsfauns, and mythical creatures alike. The satyrs were telling the fauns of their duties at Camp Half-Blood which the fauns took a liking too, the Ares and Mars kids arm wrestled, and the Mercury/Hermes kids started a blackjack table. Plates of food weren't the only things zipping around the room that night. There were people constantly getting up from seat to seat to visit different tables and meet new people. The night was full of good eats and good laughs.

After a couple hours of storytelling and joking Reyna stepped down from her Praetor chair and called for silence. "Friends of new and old welcome," she paused as a few whoops and cheers sounded and waited for the hush. "I hope you are enjoying your meals and each other's company because for it will not last long. I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news and be the one to cut your new found peace short but inn two days time we will gather our greatest warriors who will board Argo II and disembark on the greatest quest since the search for the Golden Fleece when the original Argo was still in commission. We will fly to the land of our roots, find Death's Doors and close them. Only then can we defeat our true enemy, Gaea, but that can only be possible if we unite together as one. Yes, sacrifices will be made, friends and family will die, but we can stop many others from dying as long as we work together and fight with every bit of strength that we have. Tonight is our last night before we proceed with a great mission that for some of us will be our last, so let's make this night one to remember because we might never get a chance like this again." Pause. "May fortune smile in our favor," she raised her glass. "To the gods!"

"To the gods!" Everyone else replied.

The room lingered with the awkward silence. Even with the festivities reality of the world around them managed to slither it's way into their hearts. It was true some of them would die or maybe a lot of them. Blood and tears would be shed and hearts would be broken. There was a blatant rift cause by Reyna's words and the looks of impending doom on their leaders faces'.

Jason stood to remedy it. "Come on you guys. Eat up, have a goody time because in two days we will enter the land of our ancestors and we must fight for our honor and theirs'. In order to win we must fight like the heroes that came before us, fight like the legends who we aspire to be."

That was when Thanatos finally revealed himself. "Or you can fight side by side with those legends!"

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><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	3. The Heroes of Old

The astonished heads in the room swiveled towards the back where a dark figure clad in a cloak emerged from the shadows. The mysterious figure treaded through the center aisle of tables. The shadow walked at an erie pace that caused not even a sound from his very footsteps. This stranger's arrival resulted in Jason slowly sitting back down in his chair. Murmurs were heard throughout the hall. As he walked by the various camper the temperature dropped creating a chill that crawled up and down their spines.

They were whispers of the name, "Thanatos."

Realizing he was neglecting his role, Chiron urgently trotted to Thanatos's side in the center aisle and declaimed, "Ladies and Gentlemen I present to you the God of Death; Lord Thanatos."

People got out of their seats to kneel but Thanatos stopped them with the wave of his hand and gestured them to remain as they were.

"Like I was saying," said Thanatos clearing his throat, "why would you want to _just_ fight like the heroes of your ancestors when you could fight with them instead."

As if it was rehearsed, Chiron exclaimed, "Isn't that impossible My Lord?"

"Before it was very trick," Thanatos answered promptly. "However, things have changed. I am aware that you have been made aware that Gaea has captured my door's and is using them at her disposal bringing anyone she deems worthy back to life. She has changed the rules of the game." He paused for dramatic affect. "By doing so she has forced our hand. We, the gods, have reached a decision that some could say is a last resort type of thin or an abomination. However you may sit though the decision that was made will definitely give Gaea a run for her money."

"And what would make this decision so great that the gods could deem it a masterful plan My Lord?" Chiron asked in a scripted tone.

Thalia shot up out of seat in a petulant manner,"Enough with the theatrics Thanatos! Just tell us why you're here."

"Why do young ones always have to rush these things?" Thanatos complained.

"Lord Thanatos I know you are a God but I do not see the logic in wasting time any further. If the news that you have with you is so urgent, wouldn't it be wise to tell us immediately," Lupa contributed.

"That makes sense," Chiron agreed breaking away from the script.

"Same," Jason, Percy, Reyna, and pretty much everyone else agreed.

"Fine, be like this," Thanatos shouted and took his turn being the impatient one.

In a childish manner Thanatos began to speak quickly, "The great decision that was made by the Gods is to allow Gaea to have a taste of her own medicine. We're going to fight fire with fire. She can bring back as many treacherous souls as she wants but if she is going to do so then she's going to have to do battle with the souls we choose that come back to life. We chose the original monster killers, the greatest heroes that Greece and Rome has ever known, and they have a bone to pick with her."

Everyone in the room had a hunch that Thanatos was going to say something similar to what he said, it was obvious from his hinting tone, but now that the words came out of his mouth they sounded false. Was what he was implying true or was it some trick for the heroes to pledge their undying allegiance to the gods further.

"The Gods have selected History's finest and have brought them back to this time so they can aid you on your quest or stopping Gaea. They will be joining you on the Argo II as you fly to Rome to shut my gods damned doors."

Still looks of disbelief and skepticism.

"You still don't believe me?" Thanatos asked not surprised. "Reveal yourselves," Thanatos said but not to his current audience but to hidden figures behind him.

From the shadows emerged about forty men all heavily armored, well muscled, and disciplined expressions. Some were more armed than others, some stood taller, and some looked older, but each figure commanded an appearance of respect and knowledge in their craft.

"I give you Olympus's Finest!" Thanatos proclaimed in a grand accent. "Chiron these were once the heroes that you trained so it's only right of you to introduce them. Take it away!"

Chiron cleared his throat like he had been practicing this all day and transformed into what the Camp Half-Blood members recognized as his Shakespearean form. He only transformed himself into this person when he posed as school teach while recruiting new demigods, rallying warriors for battle, reciting an epic proem, or delivering a monumental speech.

Chiron waited for silence before he began speaking.

"Let us begin by allowing me to introduce you to the greek champion and hero of the Trojan War. You might know him from his famous curse of invincibility like that of our friend Percy Jackson, but he too has managed to rid himself of it by walking through the Little Tiber. This may be one of the greatest spearman and warriors you'll have the pleasure to witness on the battlefield. He lead the Greeks to victory against the Trojans with his well-planned tactics, his mastery over his weapons, and pure determination. I give to you the son of Peleus, ACHILLES!"

Achilles was dressed in his full traditional bronze Greek armor, his dark, shaved hair was concealed inside his war helmet, he was tall, muscular, looked about thirty, and had a scarred face that of the war god Ares. There was a sword at his belt, a shield on his left arm, and his large spear that only he was skilled enough to wield in his right hand. The legend went that his weapons and armor were forged in the fires of Mount Olympus by Hephaestus himself.

At first the audience couldn't decide wether or not what they were hearing and seeing was the truth and not some phony hoax. However their hesitation faded and they appeased to Thanatos and gave Achilles a thunderous round of applause. Achilles just merely nodded his head politely while he twirled his spear expertly.

Chiron continued down the list. "Now that brings us to one of the very first killer of monsters. He is the slayer of the Chimaera, the conquerer of the Amazons, and the master of the first Pegasus. He is as deadly with his spear as with his bow but combined in combat with his intelligence he is not one you would wan't to tangle with. I give you the son of King Glaucus, BELLEROPHON!"

The twenty year old Bellerophon sat upon a pure white Pegasus, in fact the original one. The young man had a head of curly black hair and small goatee on his chin. His bow and quiver were slung over his shoulder and his spear laid across his lap. Everyone knew the story of how Bellerophon used a lead tipped spear to poison the Chimaera. The greek and roman heroes inspected charcoal black spear tip and gulped in fear as steam simmered off of it.

The crowd gave him a respectable applause. Pegasus neighed proudly as he stood on his hind legs while Bellerophon beat his chest. The onlookers looked on in wonderment of the majestic pair. Many aspiring warriors studied the physique of the hero however many of the looks from the daughters of Aphrodite and Hazel Levesque were instead diverted toward Pegasus. The Amazons were the only unimpressed ones.

After the applause faded Chiron proceeded, "This hero you may all know him for his famous Hollywood pictures. He is the one who sailed across the Sea of Monsters to retrieve the famed Golden Fleece by cutting his way through waves the ocean and monsters alike, he overcame perilous tasks, defeated the skeleton warriors of the dragon teeth, solved the most puzzling puzzles, and slew the dragon that guarded the Fleece. I give to you the namesake of Jason Grace, the leader of the Argonauts, the son of Aeson and grandson of Peleus, JASON."

Jason stood before them seemed like any other Greek warrior except he had an aura superiority. He had cropped brown hair and neatly tripped bird. On his right shoulder he wore a golden shoulder plate which appeared to share similar properties to the Golden Fleece. He had a regular xiphos strapped to his side and his shield rested against his shins. He was one of the older heroes and looked almost forty. His response to the applause was just a pound on his chest and a wave to the crowd.

Chiron carried on, "This next hero is another one who sailed across the treacherous Sea of Monsters. A returning hero from the Trojan War on quest to return to his family. He overcame dozens of islands full of traps, evil sorcerers, and deadly monster. He sailed on that ocean for ten years conquering monsters and claiming lives, and ruling islands as he went. He is the master of the bow, some say the proudest and wisest of heroes, and some may know him as 'Nobody,' the King of Ithaca, son of Laertes, ODYSSEUS!"

He was dressed plainly in a tunic, a cloak wrapped around his shoulders, and Greek helmet. He was more older looking than Jason with long dirty-blonde hair, sun beaten skin, and majestic beard that was able to command a respect. What made him impressive though was the humungous long bow that he leaned upon. Odysseus was only a couple feet shorter than Bellerophon who was sitting upon Pegasus. The bow was as tall as him and the arrows were only half that. A man would require immense strength to even draw the bow string back a quarter way. The Hunters, Frank Zhang, and the children viewed Odysseus with a new light at the sight of his awe inspiring bow and hoped to see his archery in action one day.

Odysseus replied to his introduction with a waving gesture to the audience which suggested to say, "Make some noise," and the crowd did. The cheering went on till Chiron politely raised his hand for silence.

"This next hero has an impressive track record. His description goes beyond the saying, "Armed and dangerous." He is the slayer of the Gorgon Medusa, the husband of Andromeda, the King of Mycenae, the namesake of Percy Jackson, and the son of Zeus, PERSEUS!"

A replica of Hades's Helm of Darkness sat atop the twenty-five year old's head and managed to contain his flowing yellow hair and concealed his sky blue eyes. The helm retained the invisibility capabilities like Annabeth's baseball cap but did not share the control of darkness like Hades's Helm. It only turned the wearer invisible for short periods of time but it was equally as useful. Perseus wore standard Greek armor that gleamed in the reflection of the fire light, in his right hand he held a pale green sword made of adamantine which could cut through almost anything, strapped to his left arm was a shining silver shied that reflected like the clearest ocean, on his feet he wore winged Hermes boots, and strapped to his belt was a black sack in the shape of a head. The audience concluded that it contained none other than the Gorgon Medusa's head.

The crowd didn't need an invitation this time like they did for Odysseus. They went ballistic as Perseus showed off his sword swinging capabilities as he hovered in the air, disappearing and then reappearing with the aid of his Helm, and flailing his head shaped sack.

Chiron jumped to the next hero, "Now let us the youngest but the most intellectual one. The only one who was ever smart enough to admit he needed help. He is the killer of Periphetes, the one to dismember Procustes, the ripper of Sinis, the washer of Sciron, and the first to solve King Minos's maze, the killer of the Minotaur, and the defeater of King Minos. He is the founder-king of Athens, and the son of Aegeus, THESEUS!"

He didn't get as warm of welcome as the heroes that came before him but he still earned a reputable applause. The reason that Theseus was so out place from the other heroes was because compared to the others he was the youngest. He looked about the age of seventeen or eighteen, he had tanned olive skin, a beautiful head of dark hair, and piercing green eyes. The way he stood nonchalantly and the manner in which he brandished his plain sword and cudgel maid him popular with the females. However it didn't take an expert to see through the transparency of his act. Behind the lazy demeanor he carried his face revealed all as his eyes with sadness. Percy noticed Theseus shared the same expression as all the other heroes. The old heroes tried but failed in the act of concealing their blatant despair.

Chiron continued, "So far we have met heroes that are best know for their individual deeds, choices, and actions….But now let us take a look at a man who works better as a unit. Some wouldn't really call this man hero but he is best represented as loyal soldier and one of the greatest generals in history. He is a direct descendant from Hercules himself. I give you the King of the Spartans accompanied by thirty of his finest Spartan warriors, LEONIDAS I!"

Leonidas and his Spartans were armored in their standard issued Spartan armor. On theirs waists they had their famed spartan short swords, they all had their famous shields that weren't only good for defense but offense, and finally their massive spears. Each one had more muscles than a clam bake. King Leonidas stood apart from his fellow Spartans by wearing a red cape and a special plumed helmet.

"SPARTANS!" Leonidas roared as bring them to attention.

In response to his call the thirty spartans began pounding on their shields with their spears while chanting, "AHOO! AHOO!" The children of Ares and Mars followed suit and started pounding on their shields and started chanting as well. The building exploded with the booming thunder of percussions.

Chiron held his hands up for silence again and patiently waited for the noise to die down.

"Finally we come to the our final hero. He is last but not least. The most famous and most legendary hero in all of Greek and Roman history...no, not just Greece and Rome, but of all time!" Everyone knew the hero of whom Chiron was speaking of. The hairs on their backs and arms began to rise and the chills started to flow through their blood veins causing them to shiver in anticipation.

"He is the one who completed the Twelve Labors of the God's, he single handedly defeated the Nemean lion, the slayer of the Hydra, the one who wrestled Cerberus to the ground with his bear hands, the capturer of the Ceryneian Hind, the trapper of the Eymanthian Boar, the cleaner of the Augean Stables, the bane of the Stymphalian Birds, the conquerer of the Creten Bull, and the master of the Mares of Diomedes. He is the fetcher of Hippolyte's Girdle, the Cattle of Geryon, and the golden apple of Hesperides which was protected by the dragon Ladon. I present the son of Zeus, the one and only, the man, the myth, the legend, HERCULES!"

The whole place erupted in noise. Every single living creature made some sort of sound with their body in some way. The spartans pounded their shields along with the other campers who had brought theirs and if a shield could not be found a table top was pounded equally. The pegasi, horses, and unicorns neighed, the satyr/faun bleated, and the wolves howled. Even Achilles, Bellerophon, Jason, Odysseus, Perseus, and Theseus led a chant: "Hercules, Hercules, Hercules!"The only ones who were unmasked were Percy Jackson and the Hunters of Artemis who refused to clap for their personal beliefs and inferences.

Hercules stepped forward out of the shadows for the first time. He was dressed in golden armor that took the shape of a lion appendages. The helmet he wore took the form of a majestic lion's head which was connected to a beautiful Nemean Lion cape that draped his whole body. Contrasted his armor his simple club that he wielded seemed out of place but the pure size of the weapon seemed to compliment the rest of his appearance. Hercules was the perfect specimen. He was the tallest of all the heroes standing at seven feet tall, golden and oiled skin that stretched over his muscles, a pure white smile, a handsome face, and a neatly shaven head of almond hair. Percy Jackson hated him instantly. Percy's hatred either came from the knowledge of the hero's past or the fact that Hercules, all the other Heroes of Old for that matter, were a facade that was all too obvious.

Hercules responded to his fans, the people cheering for him, and praising him by raising his hands in a modest gesture which said, "I don't deserve this. You guys are the real heroes." Then he pointed towards the line of heroes that clapped for him and he clapped for them in return. They repaid him by giving smart salutes. Percy Jackson felt his eyes roll back into his skull due to utter disgust. He and the Heroes of Old knew this was just show, an act, but they had to make it look good in order to have Thanatos believe they were upholding their end of the bargain.

There was a one last final applause for the Heroes of Old as a collective and eventually the noised died but slowly.

Thanatos was about to say some words, a possible speech maybe, but Annabeth Chase upstaged him, and took the reins:

"Hi I'm Annabeth Chase," she paused for a moment to clear hear throat and let out the nerves, "I know that a lot of you don't know me and I don't command a lot of respect here but just hear me out. Eight months ago it seemed that the odds were against us. My camp was informed that Gaea was rising again and she was summoning her sons out of slumber. We were told we would have to fight an army of immortal giants who could only be killed if the Gods and Heroes were working together. Then we were told that monsters couldn't die anymore because the God of Death was kidnapped and that we ordered to go on a possible suicide mission to try and recapture Death's Doors. They said that the greeks and the romans could never unite. It seemed like all hope was lost and that we should just give up. But the experiences we have shared today have shown us differently. They showed us we do have a chance to win. The romans and greeks are coming together is proving that we may have differences but they are negligible when it comes to defeating a common enemy. Throughout the day we have formed many new friendships which led to all of use forming a new alliance. The greeks, the romans, the Hunters, the Amazons, and eventually many more will join together so we can win this fight. And now this night, this night, the gods have truly blessed us with a gift. The heroes from the old legends have returned to help us wage our war against the Giants and help us achieve victory."

There was about to be another round of cheering when Octavian decided to speak up. "So what? How do we even know these people are eve who they say they are? They could just be Gaea's spies in disguise."

Octavian was really losing his touch and charisma. Ever since he was humiliated in front of everyone earlier that afternoon he lost his ability to be an effective speaker. His frustration and his refusal of defeat was making him irrational.

"BOO!" The Stoll Brothers yelled. The rest of the demigods followed suit.

"You insolent little wretch!" barked Lupa.

Percy, Jason, Leo, Clarisse and Frank rose from their seats and stormed over to Octavian to toss him out of the hall and many others began to rise as well.

"Okay," Octavian admitted, "they may not be Gaea's spies but they could be phonies. No disrespect Lord Thanatos but how can we trust you?"

"Stop!" Thanatos ordered. "The scrawny kid may actually have a good point."

"What are you talking about My Lord?" Reyna asked.

"Yes, what are you talking about?" Odysseus asked also.

"The boy wants proof that you really are the true Odysseus, you are the real Jason, and so on. I say lets give him proof and what better way to show proof than by proving yourselves worthy through contest." Thanatos was excited.

"We have nothing to prove to them. Of all things they should be proving themselves to us," said Perseus.

"And I agree," agreed Thanatos. "These contestsI'm proposing will prove the worth of both sides. It will give evidence that the Heroes of Old are really who they say they are and the modern heroes can prove they are capable warrior. The contests will be modern heroes versus original heroes. The competitions will also give the demigods a chance to work together, to learn from each other, and learn from the Originals. "

The Heroes of Old nodded in understanding along with the majority of the crowd.

"What say you Octavian?" Thanatos asked.

"Fine by me, but I pick the first event." Octavian declared.

"Okay, what might that be?"

"A sword duel."

"And will you be the one competing in this duel against one these fine gentlemen?" Thanatos asked gesturing to the line of ancient heroes that stood behind him.

"Not me!" Octavian said quickly.

"Of course not you. We don't want little bitty Octavian to get hurt," Thanatos said mockingly. "Besides I bet you can barley pick up a sword. I will be the one who picks the fighters."

The crowd held their breathe as they watched Thanatos think it over in his mind. It was if the God of Death was playing iny-meany-miny-moe in his head.

Finally he spoke. "All right, the terms: there will be no use of demigod powers or magical items. This is not a fight to the death but maiming is okay as long as the victim can be healed back to the original health they were in before the beginning of the fight. This will be a duel with teams of two. Since it is a sword fight I have decided it will between the best swordsman so that's why I choose Perseus and Jason to fight for the Originals...and Perseus Jackson and Jason Grace will fight against them representing the moderns. This will be a battle of namesakes."

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><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	4. The Duel of the Namesakes

Jason and Percy stood side by side in the dark hall way that ran underneath the entry arch that lead into the Coliseum. Even from where they were standing they could hear the roar of the crowd as if it was right in front of them. They looked down the hall, through the arch, and towards the center of the stadium to see Thanatos who warming up the audience by making introductions and spouting off statistics in a dramatic tone.

From Percy's side Chiron said, "Just remember what we taught you and you'll be fine. Don't forget Perseus is inhumanly fast with that green blade of his."

"Also Jason maybe a tad slower than Perseus but he's half as strong as Hercules and that's saying a lot," Lupa added.

"Thank you," said Jason.

"I didn't mean you I meant the other Jason, the original," Lupa said annoyed.

"I was joking," Jason explained.

"Good luck Seaweed Brain," said Annabeth while hugging Percy,"and please don't die out there," she said merrily as she planted a good luck kiss on his cheek.

"Easy for you to say," Percy murmured.

"Yeah, good luck," Piper agreed after giving planting her own kiss on Jason's cheek.

"Thanks, we're going to need it," sighed Jason anxiously.

The group waited silently in the hall for several moments more listening to the crowd cheer and clap. They waited till Thanatos was finished with his opening spiel on how this event would be pivotal moment in history and generations would speak of this day for years to come.

From the center of the ring they heard Thanatos yell, "I give you your very own Jason Grace and Percy Jackson!"

"Here we go," breathed Percy while taking a hesitant step forward.

At the sound of their names the two young heroes marched down the hall and passed through the arches to the main floor of the arena. The Coliseum that they stepped in may not be as large as the original located in Rome but it was still massive in size. Jason and Percy looked around to see the faces gathered in stands that surround them. All the eyes were studying them intensely while and the mouths were screaming their lips off. This was going to be a once in a life time fight and they fighters knew and so did the onlookers which made the atmosphere in the building even more chaotic.

The two stood nervously as they waited for Thanatos to hurry up and finish his numerous speeches. They made silent prayers to the gods of their choosing and zoned out day-dreamily as they sought to conquer their nervous butterflies.

"We've fought Titans and Giants before. How hard will it be to fight against two of history's greatest warriors?" Percy whispered nervously into Jason's ear.

"No kidding," he agreed.

"So what are you thinking? What's our plan of attack?" asked Percy.

"I was thinking we just improvise like we young heroes usually do and hopefully we survive. Make sure we always remain in eye contact because if there is an opportunity we better be sure as hell that we take it."

"All-righty then," Percy nodded Percy. "Take your pic, dragon slayer or Gorgon slayer, or do you just want to go with fighting your own namesake?"

"Namesakes would be appropriate," Jason grinned.

"Now ladies and gentlemen let's give a nice warm welcome for two of Olympus's best, Jason and Perseus!" Thanatos shouted as he spun in circles, looking up at the crowd with his arms out stretched.

At the sound of their names the two men entered the stadium in a slow-according to Grover Underwood-badass walk. The crowd burst into cheering and chants as the duo entered. The crowd's volume increased now that both teams were assembled and the fight was about to begin in seconds.

"Who's side are they on anyway?" said Percy as he looked at his fellow demigods cheering for the wrong heroes.

Thanatos looked to the masses in the stands, "I hope you all are ready for your minds to be blown because this is going to be a duel that will be remembered for the ages?"

The crowds cheers shook the very earth.

"Here are the terms for this if fight: Killing will not be tolerated, no magical items, no use of demigod powers, no armor, no shields, no eye gouging, no groin shots, and no throwing sand in your opponents eyes. The weapons in use will only be swords and yes, maiming is permitted only if the maimed can be put back together again. A fighter is eliminated if they break the rules, they are disarmed, they can no longer fight wether it be from injury or exhaustion, or if they choose to dishonorably surrender. This fight has no time limit and it stops when both fighters from one team is eliminated," explained Thanatos.

"Fighters, to your starting positions!" cried Coach Hedge, the satyr, the official referee of the duel.

Grace and Jackson apprehensively walked to their starting position indicated by a line white in the sand drawn in by chalk. Perseus and Jason did the same and stood on the red chalk line opposite on the opposite side of the aren. They starred daggers at their opponents the whole way there.

Jackson was armed with his trusted celestial bronze sword Anakalusmos or Riptide. From the stands Hercules recognized the old sword in the hands of the young son of Poseidon. This interested him greatly and he wondered how this hero attained his old weapon but he quickly realized it didn't matter to him. What mattered was if this young hero was worthy of Riptide. All Jackson needed was a test and what better way than to perform well in this sword duel.

Grace wielded his imperial gold gladius that was given to him by Hera. Grace's weapon was the only sword of Roman design out of the fighters and he hoped it would give him an advantage in some way.

Jason was armed with his Celestial Bronze sword that he carried with him ever since he set out on the quest for the Golden Fleece. Perseus wielded his pale green adamantine sword that was given to him by his father Zeus.

Jackson wore a brand new orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt with blue jeans and Grace wore a purple t-shirt with black jeans. Jason wore a red tunic and Perseus a green one.

Thanatos made sure both teams were ready by shooting them looks that said, "Hurry up if your ready." The whole stadium went silent as the opposing pairs stared each other down from across the arena as they waited for Thanatos to start the fight. The heavy breathing of the apprehensive audience in the silent stadium sounded like a thunder storm and the sweat that dripped from impatient faces echoed as it dripped to the marble floors.

Finally Thanatos raised his hand in the air signaling the fight was about to commence. Everyone held their breath and somehow the tension in that massive arena seemed to increase. Thanatos held his hand in the air for a few moments more to build the suspense and then he let it drop. His hand seemed to move in slow motion while it dropped but it eventually reached its final destination. Thanatos shot upward to get out of the fighters' way and the cheer of the crowd screamed back to life with the force of rocket boosters on a space shuttle.

The two teams charged each other. Jason on course to intercept Grace and Perseus on his way to collide with Jackson. It was namesake against namesake. Grace and Jackson prepared for collision with their older counter parts but suddenly Jason and Perseus zig-zagged, crossing each others paths. By doing this they traded opponents and it was now Jason against Jackson and Grace fighting Perseus. This movement caught Jackson and Grace completely by surprise and it was only their demigod ADHD that allowed them to block the bulldozer of sword strikes delivered by their opponents.

Before Jackson and Grace could even recuperate from the swift attack; Jason and Perseus followed through from the previous attack and threw another quick strike at them. Then they zig zagged back to their original opponents. Once again it was Jason versus Jason and Perseus versus Perseus. This tactic was something totally new to the two young heroes had never seen before and had no idea how to fight it.

And so it went. Jason and Perseus would attack their current opponent with a flurry of sword strikes, then suddenly they would switch dance partners, and then they would commence in raining blows down upon their current enemy. This tactic left Jackson and Grace with barley any time to defend themselves and even less time for them think about the words "counter attack".

Perseus and Jason were truly experts with their weapons. One could describe them as revolving circular fans wielding razor sharp blades. They continued to advance on Jackson and Grace with no sign of slowing and no signs of tiring. They swung their swords with the same amount of strength and force as they did when the fight first began. They showed no mercy and both were barley breaking a sweat.

Grace and Jackson new the trouble they were in, they aware that they were getting killed, and they weren't even offering any signs of resistance. Jackson managed to barley dodge an overhand stroke from Jason but found he was only in time to avoid being chopped in half by Perseus.

Jackson knew they were going to lose, he knew this before the fight even started, and he knew that defeat was inevitable. From the get-go Jackson established he wasn't going down without at least putting up a fight. After blocking a stroke by Jason and Perseus at the same time, Jackson noticed that they had already performed this move several times in the past. One of them would attack him in one instance but sometimes Perseus and Jason would team up on him at the same time in hopes to catch him off guard. Jackson figured that this form of attack left them exposed on the side that faced Grace.

This gave Grace a crucial opening but in order for Jackson to give Grace enough time to utilize this chink he would have do something to occupy his aggressors. Jackson new it would have throw out the most daring counter attack he had ever performed in his life. Jackson blocked a few more blows, deflected a few more sword stokes, and finally Jason and Perseus used their tag team move on him again. Jackson parried this attack once more and then suddenly he lunged forward, lifting his body off the ground, and throwing himself wildly like a rag-doll into the two of them, risking getting cleaved into bits in the process. This managed to knock Perseus backward five feet knocking him on to his rear end. Jason was pushed off balance and luckily Grace noticed the opening and took advantage of it.

Jackson rushed toward the downed Perseus while Grace advanced on Jason. Grace swung his gladius at Jason who somehow blocked it while still recovering from his stumble. Although Jason managed to block the strike it gave way for Grace to land a front kick to Jason's chest that knocked him off balanced again. The tables of the fight were turned in the favor of Jackson and Grace.

For the first time that night they realized that these two men were not unbeatable. This fueled them with confidence that they needed to be victorious. It boosted their morale, gave them the courage, and stimulated the two young demigods. Grace unleashed a furry with his sword and rained strikes upon Jason. In these sudden turn of events Jason smiled gleefully as he blocked a viscous sword thrust.

"Come on!" Jason shouted at Grace.

After blocking Grace's sword another time he struck back but Grace did the same also. The true fight had finally begun.

Perseus was now on his feet again while Jackson started to hone in on his attacks. The two were equal in skill even though Perseus had thousands more years of experience. They took turns swinging at each other, ducking under slash's, deflecting hacks, and side stepping lunges.

The audience started to cheer louder from the sudden rapid turn of events. At first they were witnessing a slaughter as one team totally dominated the other but now both teams were neck and neck causing the fight to cap with excitement. They were practically watching two duels going on at once. The onlookers found their heads swiveling back and forth to watch Jackson roll under Perseus's legs and stab at his unprotected back, but Perseus spun around just in time to divert it aside and in the he process return fire. Then the crowd would the turn their heads in the other direction to see Jason just barley miss Grace's head by centimeters. In retaliation Grace leapt in the air while hacking away and barley missing Jason's face but cutting off a lock of his hair in the process.

Grace and Jackson managed to force Jason's and Perseus's backs into each other. Perseus and Jason ducked under the gold and bronze blades at the same time and then replied by lashing out at their assailants' ankles. Jackson and Grace managed retract their feet in time and just as quickly as they evaded they would come back in with more attacks. Jason and Perseus stood in between the two, defending themselves from slashes, and then attacking with strokes of their own. From the outside, Grace and Jackson did the same. At one point Jason and Perseus pulled off this impressive move where Perseus ducked under Jacksons' sword and he went for Grace's legs while Jason jumped over Grace's attack and went for Jackson's chest. Both missed, but barely, and the crowd responded with a breathless gasp.

Grace and Jackson exchanged a sidelong glance, nodded, and started to do what Perseus and Jason did to them in the beginning of the fight. They mimicked the zig zag technique exactly how Jason and Perseus did. The traded back in forth between opponents and took turns dealing strikes. This caught Jason and Perseus entirely off guard and first they didn't know how to respond to their own tactics being used against them but eventually they regained their bearings and decided to mimic the mimickers.

The fight turned in to one of utter confusion as both teams' members traded off opponents. It became a whirlwind of clinging metal. Adamantine meet celestial bronze, imperial gold meet adamantine, and bronze meet imperial gold.

Then finally Jason Grace managed to sweep Perseus's legs out from underneath him causing him to land flat on his back. Grace stomped down on Perseus's unexposed stomach and pinned him down by holding the tip of his gladius to Perseus's throat. Upon noticing his downed partner, Jason abandoned his duel with Jackson entirely, charged Grace, jumped in the air, extended his legs, and landed both of his feet into Grace's chest. Grace went flying backward and at the same time his sword flew out of his hand.

"Jason Grace has been disarmed, he is eliminated!" Thanatos screamed and the crowd started to go insane.

After getting up, Jason made the mistake of trying to help Perseus to his feet. Jackson came bounding in with his sword held high and when he came into striking distance he brought it down like a hammer. Jason just managed to block it but Jackson kneed him in the stomach. As Jason hunched over in pain, Jackson grabbed him by the back of the head, and pushed his face downward as he brought another knee upward into Jason's nose. This knocked Jason upwards and then made him fall over backwards. When Jason felt his back hit the sand floor of the arena he also felt a foot ram sharply into his wrist knocking his sword out of his hand.

"Jason the Argonaut has been disarmed, he is eliminated! It is now down to Percy Jackson and Perseus!" The crowd was already out of their seats but now they were going ballistic and started to jump up and down.

Perseus now stood slowly to his feet as Jackson took a few steps backward allowing him get up so he could continue the fight. Perseus adjusted the grip on his sword, twirled it experimentally a few times, gave Jackson a slow nod, let loose a wild yell, and charged forward wielding his sword in a double handed fashion. Jackson also yelled as he charge forward. The two met in the center of the arena, their swords crossing making an "X" formation, they pushed forward on each other till their foreheads touched, their blades between them as they struggled for dominance. They broke apart for a moment forcing each other backwards. They came together again with their swords revolving in circles around them. Their blades moved so fast it was they were composed entirely of liquid. The hands, arms, and swords became a blur of green and bronze.

Somehow Perseus managed to land a lucky blow that cut Jackson's inner leg which made him sink to one knee. Before Jackson could stand up Perseus went in for the finishing disarming stroke. Jackson knew it was over and in last ditch effort he attempted the disarming technique that he learned from Luke on his first day at Camp Half-Blood.

Their swords clanged together and twisted in their grips. They both felt a tug on their arms, then the sensation of the sword handles leaving their fingers, and then the feeling nothingness in their open palms. In disbelief they stared dumbly at their empty hands and then to their swords laying ten feet away. Realization finally dawned on them, the had both just been disarmed.

"I don't believe it! Both Perseus and Percy Jackson are disarmed and eliminated. Team Jason and Perseus tie with Team Jackson and Grace! I don't believe it-IT'S A DRAW!"

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><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	5. The Originals vs The Moderns

They decided winner of the epic sword battle that was fought between Jason/Perseus and Jackson/Grace was that there was no winner. It was determined that contest was a tie albeit with plenty of upset reactions and debate about who really one. Some said that Jackson's sword left his hand first and others claimed that Perseus was disarmed a fraction of second before Jackson but the majority decided that a draw was fair.

The sword fight took place on the morning after the Feast of Fortuna. With one event already completed it left the remainder of the day free and the next to finish Moderns versus Original competitions. Thanatos wanted to knock out the events as quickly as possible. Immediately after the decision of sword fight was made he rushed everybody onto the next event. The events that followed were a wide variety of several challenges.

The first was a spear fight between Achilles and two patrons from the Moderns. The two Moderns that were chosen were the best spear fighters that they had to offer. It was decided that it was to be Gwendolyn and Clarisse La Rue would be the tributes. Achilles was armed with his spear and shield, Clarisse had her electrical tipped spear and her shield, and Gwendolyn had her hasta spear and shield. After a twenty minutes of non stop action Achilles managed to knockout Gwendolyn with a bash from his shield. Then after another long five minutes later Achilles was eventually able to force Clarisse into submission by laying her flat on her back while holding his spear tip at her neck. Throughout the fight Achilles displayed his mastery over the shield and spear combination. Even without his River Styx Curse he was almost invincible.

After that there was a pegasi race. Bellerophon was the obvious choice for the Originals and he rode his Pegasus, Pegasus; the original of his kind. He raced against two moderns; one from the Greeks and one from the Romans. The riders were Butch the son of Iris and Reyna. Reyna rode her Pegasus, Scipio and Butch was allowed to ride Blackjack with Percy's permission. Blackjack arrived on the Argo II and as well as great number of other creatures and people from Camp Half-Blood. The Argo II was huge and could house many people but Camp Half-Bloods numbers occupied half of the ship. The Second Titan War had cripple the size of their population making it a fourth of the size of Camp Jupiter's.

The race wasn't a generic "from point A to point B" race. The riders had to fly through rings of fire, avoid getting hit by arrow volleys (non-lethal of course), getting unseated by dive bombing giant eagles, and evade harpies that attacked them. Plus, the other riders were allowed to attack each other with bows, javelins, swords, spears, or what ever weapon they had. Even ramming their pegasi into each other or hijacking another riders pegasi was permitted. Reyna being the least experienced rider was eliminated early on in the race after falling off Scipio when he tried to barrel roll to avoid crashing into a tree. One of the eagles grabbed her just before she hit the ground. The race was won by Bellerophon but only by a hair's length with Butch hot on his heels. Bellerophon and Pegasus displayed their complete trust in each other which allowed them to maneuver as if they were one.

The event that occurred next was an archery competition. Odysseus was the chosen archer for the Originals and the archers for the Moderns were the best archer Camp Jupiter had to offer and Will Solace from the counselor of Apollo cabin. The objective of the contest was simply to eliminate your opponent before they eliminate you. The contestants used non lethal arrows but that didn't prevent them from hurting like hell when getting nailed by one of them.

Odysseus and the Moderns were taken to the Fields of Mars, placed on opposite ends, and then were told to hunt and eliminate each other. Will Solace was knocked out as soon as the match began. Odysseus had calculated where his adversaries were starting from, pointed his bow in that direction, made some minor adjustments to his aim, pulled back on the string, and let an arrow fly. He quickly reloaded and fired again. Will took a single step forward and walked straight into an arrow that seemed to appear out of thin air. The arrow crashed into his helmet and knocked him out cold. The other arrow missed the face of the Roman by centimeters causing her to jump back in surprise. She realized she was outclassed and changer her tactics. She crept around the fields like a small rodent while trying to make herself as small a target as possible. However she made the fatal mistake of over exposing herself behind cover. Odysseus spotted the small target from yards away from his position and before the girl could even bring her body back undercover in time an arrow smacked into her side.

With alms all the events completed, daylight fading, and the Moderns getting their butts kicked, everyone found themselves back where they started at beginning of the day, the Coliseum. The competition was between Leonidas and his forty Spartans verse fifteen foot soldiers from the Romans and fifteen from the Greeks. The Moderns also had the aid of Queen Hylla herself. The game was simple: one team would be caged up in the Coliseum at a time as an endless horde of scorpions attacked them. Each team had ten minutes to kill as many scorpions as they could in the time allotted. Who ever had the most kills after the time was up would be the winner. First up was the Moderns. They racked up about 125 kills in all. It was a very impressive number. However the Spartans took their turn and they proved that the legends about them were more than true. They were a well oiled machine that worked in perfect unison. They brought in 300 plus kills.

After a long day of entertainment the last of the events had finally arrived and the sun had finally set. The Coliseum was lit brightly with color changing torches. Dinner was served by venders walking up and down the bleachers of the stadium. This event was the one that had been anticipated all day long and had the most hype. The event was to be hand to hand combat and there was only two Originals left who hadn't participated the previous competitions. Hercules and Theseus were the final two heroes.

From the center of the arena hovered Thanatos inches above the sand with Theseus and Hercules standing behind with their arms crossed.

Thanatos spoke in his usual theatrical voice, "Who wishes to challenge these two men in unarmed combat?"

No answer.

"Anyone, anyone?"

Again, no answer.

"I understand the hesitation of testing your luck against the strongest and greatest hero ever known but we still have Theseus here. He's ready to take one of you lucky members of the hero society."

Theseus compared to Hercules was an ant. Hercules almost stood seven feet tall while Theseus was a whole foot shorter. Sure, Theseus was muscled but his figure was more slender and toned rather than hulking like Hercules. He also looked like he couldn't have be older than eighteen. Compared to the other Heroes of Old, he had no battle scars, and no signs of disfigurations on his face from past wars and long campaigns. It looked like he hadn't even begun to shave yet. He had no mass amounts of armor on him and nor did he cary any grand weapons. Theseus was dressed in his plain olive green tunic. He looked like a plain old teenage harmless teenager but still no one rose to the challenge. They were discouraged by the look in his eyes, the piercing green eyes that were the deepest depths of the ocean. His eyes spoke more about his capabilities as a warrior more than his sword, cudgel, and shield. They told the onlooker that he was a killer, an efficient one at that, and he meant business.

Thanatos sighed in defeat. He was convinced that no one was brave enough to face Theseus but suddenly out of the crowd a very large boy shot out of his seat and he looked almost as big as Hercules.

"I'll fight him, no problem," the boy said confidently. "Look the size of him," the boy sneered sizing up Theseus, "this will be over quick." Unlike everyone else this demigod didn't happen to notice the calm, cool, collected expression on Theseus's face and the hero's intelligent posture.

Thanatos shouted in thankfulness that someone was actually dumb enough to fight. "All right, step forward young one, disarm yourself, remove any weapons on your person, remove your shoes, and step down in this arena, and stand on the white line!"

As the boy made his way down into the pit of the arena Thanatos questioned him, "Who's you godly parent boy?"

"Kratos," the boy bellowed arrogantly in response.

"Ah, the God of Strength! What's you name son?"

"Biff," Biff said as he finally climbed down into the arena and reached the white mark on the sand.

Thanatos smiled behind his cowl, "All right, let's get ready to rumble!"

Thanatos gestured for Hercules to vacate the arena as he hovered out of harms way like he did for the sword duel. In preparation Biff hunched down like a football player waiting for the ball to be hiked. Theseus quietly made his way to his starting point. Unlike Biff, Theseus made no attempt to ready himself or actuate himself into a fighting stance. Instead, he just stood upright with his arms crossed with a bored expression on his face.

"I heard about you," Biff called to him from across the arena. "You've killed a lot of people. So have I." Everyone in the Coliseum understood this was a blatant lie.

There was no response from Theseus. There was only the same calm and bored expression.

"You want to know the difference between you and I?" Biff continued. "It's that you fought-if you can call what you did fighting at all-like a coward, killing your enemies when they weren't even ready! You might've well have just stabbed them in the back or slit their throats while they slept." Biff laughed. "Oh wait you did kill one of your enemies in their sleep. Did you know that Percy Jackson killed the same monster that you did, TWICE, and his first time he was only twelve years old, and guess what, it was awake!"

The whole crowd just sat in silence and prayed for Biff's sake that he would just shut his out before he got himself killed. They were all under the impression that Biff must have been either really stupid or really stupid. However, Theseus didn't seem to even notice the boy heckling him. Thanatos was amused by this one-sided exchange and let Biff continue his rant.

"You're noting but a coward!" Biff was shouting now. "Then, when you couldn't figure something out yourself you had to go get help from a puny mortal, coward! You're not only a coward but also an arrogant douche. You think you're so smart, I'll show you!"

Theseus felt his cheek muscles float upward as his lips curled into a grin.

"What are you smiling at?" Biff giggled cockily.

Theseus's response was to widen his grin and began laughing.

"What's so funny?" Biff snarled.

More laughing.

"What's so funny? TELL ME!"

Theseus shook his head, ceased his laughter, but the smile was ever present.

Biff growled. "That's it, you're dead meat!"

Thanatos was satisfied, he raised his hand in the air and let it drop. There was no cheer from the audience this time around compared to all the other events that began with an uproar.

Biff broke out of his football stance like a cannon ball being shot from a rail gun. He charged at full speed with no intention of stopping until he made contact with Theseus. The whole length of his sprint he snorted like an enraged bull. Theseus waited patiently for his attack. Looked like Theseus was going to allow Biff to ram in to him but at the last second, when Biff was just a couple feet away, Theseus side stepped casually and outstretched his leg. Biff noticed the move but it was to late. He tried to slow himself but his momentum was too great and all he could do was skid in the sand. The huge boy's legs tangled with Theseus's and Biff went airborne. He soared through the air like an eagle for a couple seconds and then gravity came into effect and pulled him down with full force. He dropped like a lead weight. On impact with the ground a cloud of dust was lift distorting the audience's view. After several moments of lying face down in the sand Biff slowly stood to his feet.

"I'm going to kill you," Biff managed to croak with rage coursing through his veins.

"Gravity is a bitch isn't it?" said Theseus indulging in the language of the current time period. This was the first Theseus had spoke all night.

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" Biff screamed.

Biff let loose a blood curling wail and charged in a blind furry swing his arms like a windmill. Theseus dodged every attack with ease and simply let Biff tire himself out. First the amount of strikes he threw decreased, his ferocity was weakened, and eventually he began had to pause hunch on his knees and gulp for air. Theseus went in for the finisher. He fired off eight strikes in rapid succession. The technique he used was similar to starting at the bottom of ladder climbing it one rung at a time. The first strike was a stomp to Biff's toes, followed by a hard knee to his groin, two punches into his belly, a chop to the side of his neck, a jab to his noes, another jab to his eyes, and Theseus finished it off by smacking his palms on top of Biff's ears. Biff fell forward towards the ground too incapacitated to even put his hands out to prevent himself from landing straight onto his face.

Theseus bent over Biff's limp body and grabbed the back of his head by the hair and held his face up to the crowd.

"Our friend here is rather large don't you think? A growing boy like him has to be hungry all the time to keep those muscles nice and firm."

Theseus smiled and slammed Biff's face into the dirt. "Here's some protein, eat up!"

After Theseus satisfied himself a while longer by rubbing Biff's face around in the sand he determined the son of Kratos had suffered enough. He dropped the boys head, stood to his feet, kicked Biff in the ribs one last time, and walked out of the stadium without saying another word.

"Uh, it seems our winner is Theseus by way of knock out," Thanatos said in a shocked and disturbed tone.

There was no cheer but a trance-like round of applause. A few people must have peed their pants from the brutal and ruthless demonstration they just witnessed. No one ever mistook Theseus for being weak or inexperienced ever again from that day forward. Theseus was not one to reckon with or take lightly evidence of Biff's beating.

When the initial shock had worn off and Biff's limp unconscious body was dragged to the medics Thanatos retook his duty as official announcer again.

"My wasn't that an impressive...fight." His brain told him to say murder. "I know you are still amazed from the last fight but we still got one more contester and this next fight will be even more amazing!"

A fragile attempt at cheering.

"Do I have any volunteers?"

Silence.

"Any takers?"

_There is definitely no one in their right mind crazy enough to fight Hercules with their bare hands_, thought Thanatos, but then a lightbulb went off in his head. _'Bare hands, bear hands,' of course a bear! A bear could fight Hercules and not just a bear but of creature from the animal kingdom!_

"Well since there is no volunteers I get to choose the lucky fighter..."

Eyes were shut, breaths were held, and bodies ducked for cover as they preyed not be called on. The Coliseum was a class room were no one wanted to be called on by the teacher because they didn't now answer.

"Step into the arena FRANK ZHANG!"

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><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	6. More Than Meets the Eye

Frank gulped in fear as he stood like statute at his tarting position marked by the white chalk line drawn in the sand. His eyes were transfixed upon the seven foot tall slab of muscle that stood before him. Hercules's biceps were the size of Frank's head and his chest was as broad as a barn door. Instead of thinking of a strategy to win, let alone survive, Frank's mind only flashed him images of Hercules stomping him into a pulp. The fact that hundreds of eyes were upon him and studying every one of his movements didn't help his nerves either. It was only after taking in several quick breaths to slow his heart that Frank remembered the story that his grandma told him about his ancestor Periclymenus. Periclymenus had fought Hercules almost 3000 years ago and if Frank remembered correctly Hercules and Periclymens were wrestling over some dispute. Frank tried his best to extract as much useful information from the story as he could remember, specifically a way to beat Hercules, but then he recalled his grandma saying something about his great-great-great-great-whatever died in long run.

"That does it," Frank squeaked to no one in particular, "I'm going to die."

The longer it took for the fight to begin the more Frank's confidence diminished. To prevent himself from exploring the possible dreadful outcomes of the competition he concentrated on happy thoughts. He imagined himself cuddling with puppies, watching the sunset with Hazel, frolicking through a meadow, heck he would even taken sixth grade algebra, just anywhere but the Coliseum. Then all he could focus on was the impending water stains that would accumulate on the fabric of his shirt below his armpit or even worse, between his legs. However, from some strange reason there was one thought that always trumped his other emotions, bees, but why bees of all things? He scrunched his eyebrows in concentration searching for answer but unfortunately it would be a question that would remain unanswered. He just hoped it would come to him before it was too late.

Hercules waved his arms frantically from his starting point in order to get Thanatos's attention. The god noticed, shook his head in irritation, and hovered his way to the massive hero.

When the annoyed immortal was within talking distance, Hercules leaned forward, and whispered, "Are you sure about this My Lord?" Hercules asked warily. "He's not what I would say the most impressive looking warrior."

"It will be fine," Thanatos tried to reassure him.

"Are you sure?" Hercules asked again. "Sure, this kid has muscles but look at his face! It's the face of a new born! How do you expect anyone to hit that?"

"Do you have dirt in you ears?" Thanatos asked petulantly. "I said it will be fine."

"I'll go easy on him then," Hercules said more to himself than to Thanatos. "I don't want to accidentally kill him."

If Hercules had x-ray vision he would've saw Thanatos grin, "Trust me, Frank Zhang is more than meets the eye. Don't hold anything back. What I am about to say might help as an incentive: if you don't give this fight your all….Then I won't give my all to that bargain we made. Understand?"

Hercules gritted his teeth, "Understood."

"Good," said Thanatos pleased before floating into the air to get out of harms way and to begin the fight.

"Ladies, gentleman, fauns, entities, and what ever other living being you may be! We are about to witness a battle of strength and physical prowess!" The crowd responded with applause.

"Our first contender weighs in at about 250 pounds, standing at seven feet tall, fighting out of Ancient Greece, and the son of Zeus: HERCUUUUUUULEEEEEEES 'EL VALIENTEEEEEEEEEEEE'!" A roar of praise from the audience. It didn't take a psychologist for one to realize that Thanatos was enjoying his announcer role way too excessively.

"This next fighter hails from the land way north! He has no specific weight or height! Fighting out of British Colombia, Canada, the son of Mars: FRANK 'BABY FAAAAAAACE' ZHAAAAAANG!" There was a cheer from the audience but not as powerful as the one Hercules was rewarded with. The loudest of the cheering came from the section where Hazel, Percy, Jason, Dakota, and Gwen sat.

"The rules are still the same! There will be no killing but this time demigod powers of any kind are permitted. There will be no magical items and no weapons. A fighter wins if they submit their opponent, cause their opponent to forfeit via injury or cowardice, or by putting their opponent into an unconscious state. Do the fighters understand?

A cocky nod from Hercules and a nervous one from Frank.

"Fighters, are you ready?"

Frank's mind raced as he tried to think of a strategy or at least some sort of idea that would help him survive this ordeal. His brain went on autopilot as his thoughts sifted through his memory databanks. He knew Hercules had fought very large things before so transforming into an animal like a bear wouldn't work. Especially since Hercules was able to wrestle Cerberus and carry the beast up a mountain. Frank was sure any beast he could transform into Hercules would be ready for it. Frank almost screamed in frustration from not knowing what creature to morph into. All Frank knew was that he wanted to disappear or either become very small so no one could see him. He just needed more time.

Too late! Thanatos's hand already fallen signaling that the fight had begun.

Hercules charged lazily. The ancient warrior only wanted to get the fight over with as quickly as possible without causing too much damage to the kid. His plan was to take this Frank Zhang kid to the ground and submit him with a choke hold. This way would be the least messy and safest way to win the fight without causing to much damage to the child.

Hercules was almost upon Frank and he was coming in like a freight train. Frank fumbled with ideas but his mind went blank overtime he concentrated but it kept on going back to the idea of him becoming smaller. Hercules was almost in grabbing range now. It was over. Frank closed his eyes waiting for inevitable impact but it never came. Frank opened his eyes to a sight of utter horror. Somehow Hercules managed to make himself even bigger than he already was! Instead of standing at a mere six feet, the dude was now as tall as a skyscraper.

_That's totally not fair, _Frank thought_. _That didn't answer the question of why everything else around him bigger as well. Had everyone turned into giants? Did Frank already get knocked out and was he dreaming?

"What the...where'd he go!" Hercules boomed and everyone else in the crowd murmured in confusion. There voices sounded like bass drums to Frank.

Maybe Frank's wish did come true. Maybe he did turn invisible but that didn't explain everyone else's rapid growth or maybe... Frank looked down at his hands but only to find that his hands weren't actually his. They were instead little pink paws. He tried to look down at his legs but to only discover that he couldn't look down at his legs at all because he wasn't even standing. For some reason he was crawling on all fours. Frank looked behind him to find a long pink, wormlike tail. Then he noticed the whiskers protruding from his long grey furred snout.

Frank had turned into a rat! The same rat he owned in third grade to be exact.

"Where the Hades did he go?" Hercules roared in frustration. "Hey, how did this rat get in here?"Unless this kid is a-"

Realization hit Hercules like a bus. Something from Hercules's past told him that Frank was the rat. No doubt about it. From what part of Hercules's history did this notion come from, he did not know. All that mattered was that he must win. He stomped down on the insignificant rodent.

Frank scurried out of the way in time to avoid the ginormous foot. Hercules stomped down several more times but Frank managed to dodge them by scurrying out of the way. Frank jumped onto one of Hercules's legs and climbed up it. Frank noticed the massive hand looming over head and Frank leapt forward barley avoiding it slamming down on him. Frank scurried up Hercules's leg until he climbed up his tunic. Frank bit down on the bare flesh. Hercules yelped in agony and tried to smack Frank but Frank was already in a new spot, sinking his teeth into him once more. The pattern continued on for a couple of minutes. Frank would bite Hercules and before he was smashed with a fist he would scurry away and bite a different part of the body.

The whole scene was ridiculous. The onlookers watched in astonishment as Hercules yelped in pain and then proceeded to smack himself. It was the most outlandish sight they had ever witnessed. Some tried not to burst into fits of laughter but most did anyway.

"Enough of this!" Screamed Hercules obviously humiliated and clearly frustrated.

The brute of a man ripped off his tunic to expose himself in a loincloth. The laughing increased but Hercules ignored them. He just wanted to find the rodent and crush it. By stripping himself he not only exposed the location of Frank but also the plethora of red bite marks that covered his whole torso. This added to the hilarity of the scenario.

"There you are!" Hercules snarled as he grabbed for Frank. Frank scuttled out of his reach and climbed up his back.

Frank climbed atop of Hercule's head and before Hercules could grab him Frank shut his and transformed. He emerged as a fully grown and hairy Gorilla. A normal person would've collapsed under the weight but of course Hercules having the ability of super human strength managed to remain standing. From the top of Hercules head Frank started to rain down blows with his giant Gorilla fists. This brought back memories of playing Donkey Kong as a kid. Hercules's knees buckled from the sudden barrage of attacks but he was able to lift Frank upwards and toss the primate off.

Frank soared in the air and before he landed on the ground he turned into eagle and flew upward into sky. When he reached a certain height he folded in his wings and dived bombed down toward his enemy. He was like a Japanese fighter pilot during World War Two going on a kamikaze run. Hercules swatted at the air in order to knock Frank off course but missed by inches. Frank's beak impacted on Hercules bare chest. He felt it break skin and small amounts of blood began to trickle. Then Frank began clawing with his razor sharp talons at every piece of flees he could get his talons on. After suffering much pain Hercules managed to rip Frank off of him.

Frank transformed back into human form and he hit the ground hard. He stood to his feet to asses the damage he had dealt. Hercules was now not only covered in red rat bites but also bruises, a giant puncture wound in his chest from where Frank had stabbed him with his beak, and deep scratches caused by talons.

"Periclymenus?" Hercules snarled as he spit blood from his mouth.

"No, but a descendant and proud, yes!" Frank answered.

"I killed Periclymenus and I have to say he did a lot better than you."

"Really because I'm under the impression that I'm kicking your ass or are you ready to give up?" Frank asked in a brutal tone that surprised even himself.

"Oh ho!" Hercules scoffed. "We are just getting started. Make your move wench!"

Frank transformed into a wolf and bounded forward. Hercules raised a hand into gesture that said, "Bring it". Frank pounced and Hercules prepared himself for a canine that would snap at his throat. Instead Frank swiftly transformed himself into a hornet upon impact and landed on one of Hercules's eyelids. Frank brought his stinger upward and stabbed down into the soft tissue of the human eyelid. Hercules screamed in pain and brought a hand to his face trying to crush Frank. Frank merely hovered out of the way and Hercules only ended up hitting himself in the face, precisely were Frank hand just stung him, causing the pain of the blemish to increase. Hercules reeled backward in severe agony as he groped his eye.

Hercules removed his hand from his face to reveal the biggest swollen eyes in history. Frank transformed back into human form and he couldn't help but cringe at the grotesque sight. He couldn't also help but laugh either. He couldn't believe that he was laughing at the one of the greatest heroes of all time but how could anyone blame him? Hercules was, at the moment, a pathetic mess. The old hero was covered in rat bites, gashes, wounds, and now one of his eyes was puffing up and was being forced close. Frank Zhang was actually winning.

"That eye looks pretty bad, I think you should SEE a doctor," joked Frank.

"You'll pay for this you insolent little wretch," snapped Hercules. Fury was blazing in his good eye. He snorted before he charged forward. Hercules was no longer that kind and humble hero that everyone was familiar from the stories they were told as kids. He was now a giant, hulking, rage machine.

There was something in the Hercules eyes that was different. In the back of Frank's mind, he recalled an old story in which Hera filled Hercules with so much rage that it lead him to kill his only family. Frank wondered if that was the same rage that was in Hercules now?

Frank turned into a bull and charged forward to meet him. The two collided in the middle of the stadium and were locked in a stalemate. They both pushed forward fighting for dominance. Hercules grabbed Frank by his horns, made yanking/twisting maneuver which flipped Frank onto his back. Hercules picked the bull up and slammed him to the ground. From there Hercules began to punch, kick, elbow, bash, pummel, batter, strike, whack, stomp, and wallop on Frank. After taking all the abuse that he could bear to take, Frank turned into a giant tortoise and hide in his shell. Hercules punted Frank like a foot ball. Frank took off towards the clouds like rocket. When he reached his maximum hight he fell back to Earth. As he fell he seemed weightless but heavy at the same time. Before he hit the ground he transformed into cat to soften his fall. Frank was lead to believe that felines could survive extremely large heights. Everything he had ever heard about cats were a lie. He crash landed on the opposite side of the arena causing a plume of dust to shoot upwards.

When the dust settled the audience found themselves looking in horror at a motionless, human, coughing, but an alive Frank. His face was bloodied and scratched, each time he inhaled his side hurt, and every part of his body was aching. Hazel covered her face with her hands put her head into Percy's chest.

That was it. They should've end the fight for sure. Thanatos was indeed about to call the fight but something inside stopped him. Call it a hunch but Thanatos needed to see where this was going. He heard a few people in the crowd demand that he ended the contest, Hazel and Percy were among them, but Thanatos need to see this through and he didn't care if people hated him for it. Thanatos allowed the fight to go on.

Hercules laughed as he slowly walked over to Frank who was lying and unmoving.

"Time to finish this."

Hercules lifted Frank from the ground, held him in the air by his throat, and began to squeeze. Frank began kicking his feet in desperation, he felt as if his eyes were going to pop from their sockets, his head was going to burst, his neck would surely snap, and his lungs would implode. At the last second he transformed into a boa constrictor and bit at Hercules's meaty paws. Hercules grip loosened and Frank slithered out of his grasp and down his arm. Frank wrapped himself around Hercules' neck and returned the favor and constricted.

Hercules grabbed at Frank and started to punch at him. He missed Frank once and punched himself in the face. Hercules fell to his knees from the lack of oxygen but managed to sink his meat hooks in-between his throat and Frank. He ripped the snake off him and held it in the air. He clasped his hands around Frank's head and tail and began to pull his hands away from each other like one stretching a rubber band. He was about to stretch Frank apart in half, he had been turned into a Chinese Finger Trap, a sick and grotesque one at that.

"I WILL BREAK YOU!" Hercules growled.

Frank closed his eyes accepting defeat. He was to exhausted to morph into another animal. The fight was out of him. Hercules was going to kill him even if it wasn't a fight to the death. He pissed Hercules off too much which lead the ancient warrior to go into fit of wild rage. Frank again remembered a story of how Hera caused Hercules to kill his own family. Ever since then Hercules wasn't the same. There was a heap of kindling that resided in Hercules and when sparked it turned him into an unstoppable monster, and Frank had restarted the fire. Hercules was no longer himself but instead a giant sack of muscles trying to rip a poor baby-faced boy in two.

Frank felt his snake skin tearing and heard his snake spine crunching as it was being pulled. Frank changed his mind about dying. He decided that he wanted to live. He wanted to win. In desperation Frank thought of the biggest animal he could think of and remembered a special he saw one time on the Discovery Channel about the ocean. Frank closed his snake eyes and let his body mold into whatever his mind imagined. When Frank reopened his eyes he was no longer being held in up the air and he wasn't being stretched to death. Unlike in the beginning of the fight when he transformed into a rat and everyone seemed to grow bigger, everyone now looked to be much smaller and everything had shrunk. Frank tried to move his legs and arms and realized he didn't have any. Instead he flopped his flippers. Frank had turned into a Blue Whale, the biggest animal on the planet since the dinosaurs. The crowd gasped in surprise at the pure enormity of the animal.

He remained a Blue Whale for a few moments longer but he remembered that whales couldn't breathe out of water for long periods of time unless they had a water source. Frank transformed back into a human quickly. He found himself laying on top of an unmoving Hercules. At first Frank thought the man was dead but soon realized that he was just unconscious. Frank tried to stand to his feet but as soon as he got to one knee the pain caused from the stress in his joints made him scream. He collapsed back to the ground and rolled over on to his back looking up at the night sky that was decorated in stars. Before his eyelids drooped closed he made out the constellation of Hercules.

"By the Gods, he has done it! Frank Zhang has knocked out Hercules. For the first time in history Hercules has been defeated! FRANK ZHANG IS THE WINNER!

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><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	7. Eastward

Everyone found themselves back in the Mess Hall again. Tonight was their last night at Camp Jupiter and tomorrow morning they would embark their heroic mission which entailed the retaking of Death's Doors. They knew the stakes and they understood the sacrifices they would have to make; thus making the ambience of the room of desperate elations, young people attempting the suck the marrow out of life before they would be forced to choke on the bone.

The heroes that had competed in the Originals vs Moderns contests all sat at the same table. Each contestant conversing with the table mate next to them, bellies full, plates empty, and glasses continuously being topped off with refills of their preferred beverage.

Biff, the son of Kratos had to eat his food with a straw due to the wretched state Theseus left him in. The young man had three cracked ribs, a broken jaw, fractured toes, and a black eye. When Theseus approached him, he flinched and cowered behind his hands.

Theseus smiled and merely gave him a light pat on the back while whispering in the most gentle tone, "Don't ever disrespect me or my friends ever again or I'll hang you by your intestines. Understand?" Kratos nodded his head vigorously and before he left, Theseus flashed him one more smile.

Frank and Hercules sat across from each other; both with one of their arms in a sling and a brace wrapped around their necks. The medics said they would be fully recovered within the next couple of days thanks to their demigod healing, nectar, unicorns' horns, and ambrosia. Despite their physical state and the events that occurred the night before, specifically the brutal fight that took place between the two, they both were talking like their were old friends. Apparently they had made their peace or they were faking it. Either way, they weren't tearing the place a part.

"...So I said to him, 'Welcome to Canada, idiot!'" shouted Frank, "Welcome to Canada, Idiot!" He repeated with emphasis, like he was delivering the greatest punchline ever and then started to crack up with Hercules joining in on merriment.

"Oh, you're a funny one," Hercules bellowed as he gave Frank a friendly smack causing the boy to jolt forward and wince in pain. It seemed as if Hercules had really harmed Frank and he broke out into rapid apologies but Frank pointed a finger at him and started to laugh.

"Gotcha," Frank said. Hercules exploded into laughter as well.

"You had me going there for a moment!" Hercules pointed back.

Grace and Jackson sat with Jason and Perseus. The four of them going into great detail about the previous day and the sword fight they participated in.

"...I admit that it was pretty awesome but not _as_ cool as that somersault that you did!" Percy said to Perseus. Then Perseus or someone else would comment on another skillful move that someone pulled off.

"...Percy, what were you thinking? You could've been sliced into to bits!" Grace said as he recalled when Percy launched himself at Jason and Perseus in order to distract them.

Further down the table was Bellerophon telling Butch what to feed pegasi and how to groom them; the Spartans telling dirty jokes in ancient Greek which were too dirty to translate; Achilles explaining to Clarisse on how to properly lift an enemy into the air with a spear and then throw them into another; Odysseus bragged about his adventures on across the Sea of Monsters; and Theseus arm-wrestled different children of Ares/Mars showing them the true meaning of "size maters, not."

After an hour or so of festivities, everyone dispersed from their tables and sat at new ones to allow themselves to speak with old friends or introduce themselves to new ones.

Percy, Jason, Piper, Annabeth, Frank, Leo, Hazel, Reyna, Thalia, Grover, and Tyson all sat at one table sharing stories of what had happened in the last year.

"Can we just get things straightened out here and just call the Gods by their Greek names please?" Leo asked.

"Why should we do that," asked Reyna accusingly.

"I'm tired of having to say to say Ares/Mars, or Zeus/Jupiter, or Vulcan/Hephaestus. It would be a lot easier just to say Poseidon or Hermes."

"Are you saying that Greeks are better?" Reyna asked with slanted eyes.

"No, it's just that-that-that it makes sense to call them by their Greek names because that's what they were known as in the first place and I don't know most of the Roman names anyway," Leo stammered.

Reyna stared him down till he almost ran for his life but she cracked a smile, "I was kidding." Leo let out a breath of relief. "Most of my campers are used to the Roman names but what you're saying makes sense. All in favor of referring to the Gods by their original names?"

Every nodded in agreement.

Then Leo turned to Frank, "So you're telling me you killed a giant?"

"Yep," Frank nodded trying not to move his neck too much because of the brace. "Stabbed him in his shiny face," he said wistfully but then adding, "I had help of course." He looked to Percy and Hazel. Hazel responded b squeezing his hand gently.

"What do you guys think of these prophecies lately? They seem too self explanatory," Annabeth put in.

"Yeah, that's true," Thalia agreed. "All the ones that I've heard before are always full of riddles or meant the opposite of what they said."

"I like them better that way," Percy said. "I used to hate them but the ones now are just, too simple."

Everyone else agreed.

"Somehow they seem more dangerous than the mysterious," said Grover.

"One way or another, we'll understand the prophecies better when they actually happen," Jason spoke up. "Every time someone tries to figure them out or change them, bad things always happens," Jason reminded them. "Just talking about it seems like we're jinxing our selves in some way."

"Agreed, let's change the subject," Piper said quickly.

There was an awkward silence, not because they were nervous in front of each because it seemed like all of them had been friends for years, but because they had run out of things to talk about.

Finally Hazel said something, "There's me, Frank, Percy, Jason, Piper, and Leo. Who do you think the last demigod is for the Prophecy of Seven?"

Percy was about to say Annabeth but he remembered the disturbing lines that Ella had recited:

_"Wisdom's daughter walks alone,_

_The Mark of Athena burns through Rome."_

What ever it meant could be either be good or bad but most likely the latter. Besides, the prophecy probably was not even the full prophecy, just a small piece. Also, like Jason had said earlier, speaking of prophecies could jinx them. Percy decided it was best to keep his mouth shut.

"I don't think it's anyone we know or anyone that goest to Camp Jupiter or Camp Half-Blood because if they did I think they would have been revealed themselves by now," Frank explained.

"That demigod, the chosen one, the demigod of demigods," Leo said with a grin. "The whole concept is very cliche."

"Yeah, this person will probably show up at the last minute when we need him/her the most." Percy said.

"Deus ex Machina," said Annabeth.

"What?" Everyone else questioned.

Annabeth sighed in exasperation. "It's a literary device in which when the heroes are at their lowest moment, all hope is lost, an all powerful being saves the day."

"So you're saying some super demigod will save us?" Percy asked.

Annabeth shook her head. "That's what it seems like but I hope not. These Deus ex Machinas don't occur till a lot of people die and besides its stupid when it happiness in stories, lazy writing if you ask me."

"What if it's Nico?" Hazel said with bright eyes.

All eyebrows were perked.

"I don't know," Thalia said skeptically. "As much as we all miss Nico, I don't think it's him."

"We'll find him right?" Hazel asked hopefully, almost desperately.

"Yeah," said Percy confidently. "Even if it's the last thing I do." Nico was Hazel's brother but he was almost like one to Percy.

More things were to be said but Thanatos called for everyones attention. All eyes in the Mess Hall were directed to the cloaked and hooded god.

"I need the counselors from Camp Half-Blood, the Praetors, the Senate, the Centurions, and the Heroes of Old in the Senate Building please."

No one got up to move. "Now would be great, please. Lupa and Chiron come too."

* * *

><p>"But My Lord what happened to closing your doors as soon as possible?" Chiron asked trying to keep his cool.<p>

"Your forces aren't ready yet. If you were to go now you would all wiped out." Thanatos told him.

"Gaea's forces can't be that strong My Lord. We could can beat them, especially since the Heroes of Old have joined us."

"Still, our numbers aren't large enough and you need time to prepare to prepare troops. I'm talking about weapons, battle plans, and strategies. That is why tomorrow you will go to Camp Half-Blood and prepare an invasion force. You will have five days to get them ready. Achilles will be in charge of training them."

"Understood My Lord but were will you be?" Achilles asked.

"I will be doing some reconnaissance and trying to gather what allies the Gods still have left. I must also take on the difficult task of trying to persuade the rest of my relatives into giving you a little more assistance. They are still refusing to take a direct part in this 'Gaea situation'. In the mean time however, I want you at Camp Half-Blood training."

"How many troops do you wish for Camp Jupiter to offer?" Reyna asked.

"Mr. Valdez, how much room do you have left on your ship?" Thanatos asked him.

Leo did some calculations in his head, "Well most of Camp Half-Blood came here, some weapons storage, lavatories, supplies, uh, about enough room to fit five-hundred more heavily armed demigods comfortably.

"Then Three-hundred of Rome's finest troops will accompany you then. Praetor Reyna it's your decision on the fighters you choose. That is all from me." Thanatos snapped his fingers and disappeared into the shadows.

"What a prick," Odysseus said convinced that the god was out of ear shot.

"The Fifth and First Cohort will go." Reyna decided immediately. "Grace and Zhang will lead the Fifth with the Eagle while Octavian and I will lead the first."

A few frustrated moans at the sound of Octavian's name. Most of his followers, credibility, and respect had been lost in the last few days but Reyna couldn't just up and get rid of him. He was as much of Rome as was Terminus. As much as Reyna hated the idea, Octavian would have to come, and he still had much to contribute.

"Will there be enough room for the Amazons as well?" Queen Hylla asked entering the room.

"For beautiful ladies such as yourselves, of course," Leo smiled while fixing his hair.

"Shut up," Reyna and Hylla said to him in unison.

Achilles stood in the center of the room. "All right, it's decided then. Everyone get your people organized and prepared. We live at first light tomorrow. Understood?"

"Aye, sir!"

"Then get too it."

* * *

><p>They boarded in columns into the lower deck of the ship. A crowd gathered around the ship waving their goodbyes. The demigods of Camp Half-blood and it's delegates boarded first, then the troops from Camp Jupiter, the Amazons, the Hunters of Artemis, the Heroes of Old and the Spartans, and finally Mrs. O'Leary, Tyson, Ella, and what ever animals that were coming along.<p>

Leo Valdez had really out done himself. Argo II was impressive for only being built in eight months. More than impressive, it was magnificent. The ship was almost twice the size of Camp Jupiter's senate house. It was beautiful slender looking hybrid of a Civil war era steamboat and ancient greek war ship. The ship had two decks with the railings lined with the cannons and peep holes in the bottom decks with even more artillery guns. At the nose of the ship was the menacing face of Festus the dragon with his gleaming red eyes.

"This is huge! This must by ten times the bigger than the original Argo," exclaimed the original Jason as he entered the ship while looking around in awe.

"I had a lot of help," Leo said from behind him. "Weird, I never thought I would show THE Jason this ship," Leo said. "Want to take a tour?"

Jason followed Leo around the ship who showed him the cannons that were lined along the ship's perimeter jutting out of holes along the exterior. The weapons were of civil war design that fired shells made of greek fire incased in celestial bronze and grappling hooks too. The barracks were simply a large open room that was a quarter of Grand Central Station. Hundreds of hammocks hung over every square inch of the room with footlockers that sat below them. Then Leo lead him up a ladder to the upper deck. The upper deck was the size of two foot ball fields. The center mast was as tall as a watchtower and the along the railings were more cannons. At the bow and prow of the ship were two fifty caliber machine guns that fired celestial bronze bullets. Leo then led Jason up a small staircase to the bridge. A deck that sat in the bow of the ship that had a clear vantage point of the rest of the ship.

"See these are the controls," Leo said touching a handle that led to the tiller.

The control center of the ship was a cross between classic ships seen in pirate movies with a steering wheel, tiller, and the like, but it also contained several computer monitors, cables, switches, and gauges that encompassed the ship's steering wheel.

"Then what's that?" Jason said to a box shaped object connected to odd string and more box objects.

Leo's smile widened. "That's called a t.v. and this," Leo said picking up two white remotes, "this is the Wii nun chuck."

"I don't understand."

Leo shook his head, "It's a future thing but anyway it controls pretty much all the ships functions."

Leo turned on the t.v. and pointed the Wii-motes at the screen and began waving his hands.

"We got our basic controls, weapons systems, vertical take off, altitude measurements, gauges…."

Leo rambled on and Jason nodded pretending he understood everything that was being explained to him. The world had changed since he had last been here.

"...And the outer-hull is made of a mixture of celestial bronze and titanium," said Leo as he stroked the railing of the ship. "So that concludes our tour. What do you think?"

"It's...it's beautiful," Jason managed to say.

After the final preparations were made, the ship finally was ready for take off. Leo took his spot at the helm and through the ships built in PA he ordered all hands on deck. He flipped a few switches, pressed a few buttons, picked up the Wii nun chuck while simultaneously making adjustments with joy sticks and the stirring wheel. His hands were a blur as he worked. Slowly the ships engines hummed causing the entire vessel to vibrate. The ship hovered slightly above ground, meters above the air, as it's landing gear folded in to itself. The sound of the engines churning increased in volume.

"…And Houston we have liftoff," Leo said as the ship rose in the air and began to collect altitude.

The crowd below cheered and waved goodbye. The people aboard the boat gathered around the railings of the upper deck, where they all surprisingly managed to fit, and in turn waved their goodbyes and blew kisses.

Tyson could be heard yelling, "Bye ghosty, bye people, bye!"

The ship hovered higher and higher till the people on the ground were tiny ants. The ship finally stopped ascending when it was floating comfortably underneath the clouds. Everyone remained outside on the upper deck for a while enjoying the sights. They looked on in wonderment of the vast redwood forests of California, the running streams, and the sloping hills that were sprawled below them. They soon passed the California borderline and left the ravishing state behind them. For some of the campers from Camp Jupiter this was their first time leaving California in years. After a few more moments of reminiscing good times, making silent prayers, and giving one last farewell to their home, they dispersed to various regions of the ship, drawn away their duties.

Annabeth found Percy leaning over the railing, overlooking the countryside below him. Percy hated flying but at that moment, he had found serenity.

"Beautiful isn't it?" Annabeth asked from Percy's side as she curled her fingers into his.

"Yeah," said Percy deep in thought while wrapping an arm around her. "It's strange leaving that place. It was like another home," Percy told her softly.

"You were only there for a week _and_ out of four of those days, you were roaming the West coast trying to save the God of Death."

"Camp Jupiter showed me something I never thought possible. It showed me that demigods could get a proper education, they could have families, and grow old. I never thought that would ever happen for a person like me, like us, but..." Percy trailed off longingly. "We have to win this time Annabeth or else-"

Annabeth cut him off. "We will win Percy! Listen Seaweed Brain, you have me and I have you, not to mention all the friends, new and old, that will stand by us. We can do this Percy and we're going to make Gaea wish she stayed asleep by the time we're finished with her. Besides, when you and I are work as a team, let's face it, we own."

Percy turned and looked deeply into her grey eyes and brushed his lips against hers. "You're awesome, you know that?"

"I know," she said as she rested her head on his shoulder. "Now let's go home."

"What do you think my mom is going to say about all this?" Percy said.

Annabeth inspected every aspect of his body with her intelligent eyes. "You need a haircut," she said plainly.

"I do not!"

"Do too."

"Do not."

"Do too! She also wanted me to remind you that your chores are piling up."

"What! She thought I was dead!"

"So did I! I was worried, not to mention angry and maybe insane, and so was she. We had every right to be."

"This is so not fair!"

The ship sailed off eastward towards the rising sun. Apollo had been generous that morning and awarded the Earth with a golden sun. The ship faded into the clouds as Annabeth and Percy's playful banter also faded away.

_"Good young heroes," said the earth lady with her eyes closed. "Form these friendships, these bonds, these connection, because when I crush you, your defeat will be even more devastating."_

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	8. The Grunts

They landed at Camp Half-Blood at about midday right next to the Thalia's stark whit pine tree. A greeting party made of the rest of campers that did not attend the Camp Jupiter journey, the nymphs, the satyrs, Argus, and Rachel Elizabeth Dare. They waited expectingly for the returning heroes. Peleus, the dragon that guarded Thalia's Tree, regarded the ship's landing as disruption of his nap and went back to sleep irritated.

"Is it ironic that I see the Golden Fleece with a dragon guarding it and I'm not trying to kill?" said the original Jason as he looked at Peleus and then the gold sheep skin that hung off one of Thalia's Tree's limbs.

"You're back early," Rachel said to Annabeth as she got off the boat.

"The big baby over here was getting homesick," Annabeth winked as she hugged her friend and then nudged Percy.

"Percy!" Rachel shouted as she entrapped him into a bear hug.

"Good to see you too," he managed to gasp.

Rachel stepped back with her face going from smiles to seriousness, "We received the Iris Message from Chiron. He told us that you were coming back, he said something about training."

"Thanatos doesn't believe were ready yet to take back his Doors," said Percy. "The Gods brought back the old heroes from the legends to help us out but he still thinks that's not enough. All the greats are back: Hercules, Perseus, Jason, an-"

"I already know," Rachel told him.

"Did Chiron tell you?" Percy asked in wonder.

Rachel pointed at her self, "Oracle, remember?"

"Oh right," Percy said stupidly.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Have you had any visions lately," she asked Rachel.

"It's all been kind of fuzzy, just flashes and brief images. A lot of warriors fighting, explosions, things dying, people screaming in panic or pain. It was some pretty scary stuff but you learn to get used to it."

"How merry," Percy said sarcastically.

"A war is coming and I wouldn't expect you to see anything different but did something stick out to you. Did anyone say or do anything that could possibly be important?" Annabeth pressed.

Rachel knit her eyebrows.

"You're not telling me something," Annabeth knew.

Rachel was about to open her mouth but Achilles called for attention with the conclusion of the de-boarding.

"We'll talk about this later," Annabeth said quietly.

Rachel nodded and quickly walked away before she could be questioned further.

"There's something she's not telling us and it's bothering me," Annabeth said to Percy.

"I wouldn't worry about it," Percy said soothingly. He in fact was worrying also but felt it would be counterproductive to let her know. He feared what Rachel wouldn't say was related to the unfinished prophecy that had something to with Annabeth being in danger.

Annabeth was going to reply to Percy but Achilles interrupted her by ordering everyone at attention. Achilles already stood at an impressive height but he found a box to stand on which made him seem like a giant.

"Lord Thanatos has seen fit that we prepare ourselves for our mission ahead. He has put me in charge of training you. He wants you to be the best you can possibly be and that's whats what I plan on doing. I'm going to make you the best warriors in the world in the short time that we have. I understand that all of you have some training and experience so we won't have to start entirely from scratch. I'm not saying it won't be easy but we will get it done. I am not alone in this either. Before we arrived, I took the liberty to Iris Message the Camp. They in turn took time to prepare a training ground for us."

"In order to give you the best training I have decided to split our forces into groups which each have their own special talents with a General in charge of it. I have made my fellow Heroes of Old my assistant generals. Once I have finished speaking, I want you to get behind the group that best suits your abilities."

"I am now going to describe each group: If you are one who fights with a spear then you are with me. If you are an all around foot soldier you will form ranks behind King Leonidas and his Spartans. If you are a swords man you'll will gather around General Jason. If you are one who fights in close quarters or with blunt weapons you are with General Hercules. If you are a skilled rider of a winged beast or have the ability to fly, group around General Bellerophon. If you are the type who fights with stealth and speed assemble near General Perseus. If you are an archer you will be with General Odysseus. For those of you who are unsure of your are of expertise, then you are with General Theseus."

"Percy Jackson, Jason Grace, Frank Zhang, Hazel Levesque, Piper McLean, and Leo Valdez will report to me after I am finished with what I have to say. Everyone else, get to your groups."

The heroes separated from each other and formed ranks behind their designated Generals. The Hunters, with disgusted faces, and most of the Apollo kids went to Odysseus. Butch, Reyna, and the Aphrodite cabin members went to Bellerophon. A majority of the Ares/Mars campers went behind Achilles and King Leonidas. The children of Athena/Minerva went to Jason. The kids of Kratos, Nike, Bia, and Zelus went to Hercules along with a few others. The Hermes/Mercury kids, some children of Erebus, some hunters, some children of Nyx, and a few shady looking types went to Perseus. A whole mix of people went to Theseus. Others like the Amazons, some satyrs, and few dozen demigods spread into the groups that they felt they belonged to the most.

When Achilles saw everyone was situated, he spoke again. "I will get to our training schedule in a moment but first I would like to say a few things." Achilles cleared his throat.

"What we will be teaching you is a combination of Greek and Roman tactics with a few twists. We will take the strengths of both styles of fighting and doing away with the rest. From now own you are no longer Roman and you are no longer Greek. From here on out, you all are just a bunch of sloppy scumbags. You are worthless but I am going to make you worthy, stronger, faster, and more intelligent warriors. All the training you have received in the past is nothing compared what I have in store for you. No offense to Chiron or Lupa.

"I'll make proper warriors out of you. Till then, you are going to have to work for it. General Jason told me it would only be appropriate to call ourselves the new Argonauts and I agree, but you are going to have to earn that name. You will be referred to as 'Grunts' for now."

Achilles smirked, "You're going to learn to hate me in these next five days but in the end you will thank me."

"Your training does not start till tomorrow. The rest of this day is yours but come tomorrow morning you are my property. The day will start with PT or physical training, and it is mandatory for all. After that you will coalesce with your groups and Generals. You will spend the rest of the day training with them. The Generals and I have already gotten together and have planned a wonderful itinerary for you maggots that we think you'll enjoy. Remember your groups and Generals and Generals remember your soldiers because you are in charge of them. As for your PT instructor, I decided it will be Mr. Gleeson Hedge."

"Mr. Hedge if you will..." Achilles said as he stopped down and gestured for Hedge to step onto the box.

Instead of stepping up on to the box; Hedge decided to pace up and down the ranks of Grunts that stood before him. His hands behind his back and chin pointed to the sky.

"GOOD AFTERNOON CUPCAKES!"

The Grunts looked at him plainly with no expression or response.

"I said, GOOD AFTERNOON CUPCAKES!"

"Good afternoon Coach Hedge!" The group reluctantly replied in unison.

"What was that? I can't hear you!"

"GOOD AFTERNOON COACH HEDGE!"

"That's more like it," Hedge said satisfied. "This is whats going to happen every morning: We will go for a nice run in the ocean and then will do a few laps around the perimeter of this Camp. The nymphs were kind enough to build us an obstacle course that you'll love, trust me! Its full of a bunch of nice surprisesHades that I think we can all learn to live. We will use the Hades out of that obstacle course and that's for sure, no doubt about it. Then we will run more laps, do some pushups, pull ups, and crunches. Then rinse and repeat till I see fit. Any questions?"

A demigod leaned toward his friend next to him and whispered into his ear. "He expects us to do all that? I bet he couldn't even do one lap without puking?" He didn't think Hedge could hear him but he was sadly mistaken.

"WHO SAID THAT?"

No reply.

"WHO ALL THING THAT IS GODLY SAID THAT?" Still no answer. "Fine, it's going to be that way then. Everyone get down for fifty pushups."

The Grunts groaned in protest.

"It was him," someone called out and the others joined in on the shouting and finger pointing.

"Oh, cry me a river! I see how it is, when you all have to suffer, you rat each other out. Let's make it seventy push ups then." More groaning. "It doesn't matter if one of you disrespects me or any of your Generals, you are all at fault. You are now a team, one unit! You work together, grow together, accomplish things together, make mistakes together, and take responsibility for each other."

"How are you going to expect yourself to protect and possibly risk your life for your buddy if you're not even willing enough to do a few push ups for that person? You must learn to make sacrifices for each other...it all starts here!"

No one got down to do the pushups. "Do you need Q-Tips to clean out you're ears? I SAID EVERYONE DOWN FOR SEVENTY PUSHUPS!"

The Grunts gave Achilles pleading looks but in response he simply grinned. _Don't look at me, he's the PT Officer, _his face seemed to say.

Everyone groaned as they got into pushup position. "You are a team. If one of you messes up, then you all take the fall as a team. NOW LET'S GO! DOWN, UP! DOWN, UP!"

When the pushups were finished and everyone climbed back to their feet Hedge said, "I have nothing else General Achilles."

Achilles stepped back up on to the box. "The rest of the day is yours. Go visit your families if you have some near by or go relax and enjoy yourselves because come tomorrow... let's just say tomorrow will be the most miserable day in your pathetic lives."

"GRUNTS, DISMISSED!"

King Leonidas stepped forward, "GRUNTS, AHOO! AHOO!"

While pounding on their shields, clapping their hands, or stomping their feet, the demigods chanted back, "AHOO, AHOO!"

"FALL OUT!"

* * *

><p>Achilles met with Percy, Jason, Leo, Frank, Hazel, and Piper.<p>

"I have been told that you are six of the seven demigods in this...Great Prophecy that everyone speaks of."

They nodded their heads.

"That makes you very special then and that also means you are going to be looked up too. People who are looked up too are only the best of the best. I am going to make these Grunts the best and that means you have to be better. I have seen leadership qualities in all of you and I only hope to capitalize upon them." Achilles told them.

"Instead of falling into a specific group like your fellow half-bloods and warriors; you'll have to participate in all of them. After PT each morning you will start off with my unit for a couple of hours and then from there you will go to the next, to the next, and so on. Understood?"

They replied, "Understood."

"Understood what?"

"UNDERSTOOD, SIR!"

"Do you have any special abilities that you want to tell me about which could possibly situate you into a specific unit when war time does come. Start by saying your name and tell me what you do."

Percy went first. "Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon. By being a soon of Poseidon I can control water, speak to horses and to ocean creatures, and I can live underwater. I've also been told I can use a sword pretty well sir. I hate flying but I can manage to ride a Pegasus once in a while."

"Jason Grace, son of Jupiter. I can manipulate the wind and lightning. I can fly as well. I am very proficient with a sword and lance."

"Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus. I can build anything out scrap metal and repair any sort of machine. I'm the only one of siblings that can control fire. My tool-belt can summon any tool as long as I ask for it. As for weapons...I don't use them, I build them."

"Frank Zhang, son of Mars. I can turn into pretty much any animal but my the strength of my animal forms depend on the familiarity of the creature. I would say I'm also good with a bow."

"Hazel Levesque, daughter of Pluto. I have the ability to control precious minerals like gold, silver, diamonds, and things like that. I like to use a spatha and I ride the horse Arion."

"Control precious minerals?" Achilles asked with his eyebrows raised.

Hazel closed her eyes and lifted a ruby out of the ground and then let it sink back into the Earth. "Unlike children of Hades who control the dead, children of Pluto control his wealth."

Achilles contained his wowed expression and nodded to the remaining half-blood.

"Piper McLean, daughter of Aphrodite and I have the ability of charm speak. I can make anyone do almost anything for me. I'm not much of a fighter but I do have this for protection."

From Piper's jacket she removed her beautiful look ceremonial knife, Katropis

Achilles eyes bugged at the sight of the weapon and he almost flinched. "I have not seen that blade in some time...Troy." His voice trailed off as he stared into the distance and his glazed, recalling distant memories . "A river of blood, all for nothing."

"Sir?" Percy asked upon Achilles trance like state.

"Uh, nothing else, you are dismissed."

* * *

><p>Percy invited Annabeth, Grover, Tyson, Frank, Hazel, Leo, Jason, Piper, Rachel and Thalia to his house for a little get together. When Percy's mom opened the door to find her son starring directly into her eyes, she started to slap him.<p>

"How could you do that to me? How could you do that to me?" Sally Blofis wailed.

"Mom, I'm sorry but It wasn't my fault. Of all the people you should be hitting it should be Hera not me."

Sally stopped and broke down into tears of joy as she started hugging and kissing him. "Mom, you're embarrassing me in front of my friends."

"Silly me! How could I forget about your company? Come in side, please," she insisted.

The rest of the night they sat around the table eating blue foods, listening to Led Zeppelin, and telling Mrs. Blofis about their past adventures. Paul Blofis came home from work and joined in. He sat listening intently to the awe inspiring stories.

"Your'e telling me you got to actually meet THE Hercules, and Perseus, and Jason, and Odysseus and-and-and-"

"Yes, all of them," Annabeth said impatiently.

"How are they, they must be glorious?" Paul said dreamily.

"Not exactly," Grover said shaking his head.

With a mouthful of blue chocolate-chip cooking, Leo mumbled, "Yeah, they got sticks up their asses."

"They're okay but one tried to kill me the other day," said Frank gesturing to his arm in the sling. Paul faked a look of concern. "I should be fully recovered by tomorrow, besides Hercules made it up to me and the rest of them seem okay.

"They seem okay but they're really not," chimed in Leo again, almost begging for attention.

"They're damaged," Piper said. "Something from their past haunts them all."

Rachel closed her eyes and began to speak and in her mind she searched for answers.

"They were summoned by the Gods because they made them an offer. If the Heroes of Old help, they get to spend an eternity with the ones that they lost and cared about. Some may not know it but they are also repenting from actions from their past life." Rachel's eyes snapped open.

"That explains the sticks up their butts," Leo interrupted.

"Honestly," said Thalia. "Their behavior doesn't surprise me. If you think about it all heroes have crappy endings. Hercules got poisoned by his own wife and Jason's own ship crushed him." Thalia explained.

"The stories might not say it but a lot of them did as many bad deeds as their good ones," added Annabeth.

"If they're trying to absolve themselves of their past life; then I think they deserve a second change," Hazel said. She could relate to the Heroes of Old from her own personal experience.

"We're forgetting that they're psycho," Grove bleated.

"Theseus is the only one who shows it though. Biff may have been a jackass but after what happened to him..." Jason shuddered.

"They all hide their true emotions behind happy face masks," Percy said. "I don't blame them though, sometimes serving the Gods sucks." Percy recalled personal experiences i.e. Ares and Hera.

"No kidding," they all agreed.

They sat in silence thinking about the true nature of the Heroes of Old. These thoughts almost ruined the night.

Tyson saved the day though and shouted, "Peanut-butter!" He shouted it with a brown stained smile after he devoured his fifth peanut-butter sandwich.

Everyone started laughing and soon enough jokes followed and the flow of conversation continued.

Annabeth mouthed across the table to Rachel, "When are you going to tell me?"

Rachel mouthed back, "Later. Private and Percy."

No one noticed the exchange between the two and for the moment, Annabeth and Rachel forgot about it and got distracted with their friends' antics. Everyone got so lost in each other's company that they lost track of the time but eventually someone had to look at a clock said it was time for them to leave.

"Goodbye, Mrs. and Mr. Blofis! Thanks for letting us over," they called behind them as they exited through the door and walked down the stoop onto the sidewalk.

"You guys go on ahead. I'll meet you at the van," Percy said waving them away.

Percy stopped at the door and turned to look at his mother. "I'm sorry mom but I have to go again," he said apologetically.

"I know, you always do. Besides, how can I expect you to save the world within the confining walls of this house." Sally said with tears streaming down he cheeks. "I knew what I signed up for when I kept you."

"I'll be back mom," Percy said with tears coming down his face as well, trying to reassure her.

He wrapped his arms around her. "I wish you can only stay longer," she whispered in his ear.

"Me too, me too."

"Be safe for me will you?" She said softly.

"You know I always I am."

After a few moments more they broke a part. "You need a haircut," she said while ruffling his dark hair.

Percy beamed, "Mom."

Percy turned to leave but Paul stopped him, "Hey Percy, would it be cool if you brought me back a souvenir?"

"I'll see what I can do," and Percy left.

Percy whipped the tears from his eyes and walked to the van. "Love you mom!" He called back.

"I love you too, sweetie. Now go save the world as usual." Sally watched Percy walk all the way down the street till she couldn't see him anymore. She looked up to clouds and prayed, "Please return him safely."

"He'll be fine Sally. The kid is strong." Paul reassured her.

"I know," she said wiping a tear from her cheek.

Percy got into the driver's seat of the van and looked out the window so his friends couldn't see that he was crying. Life was so unfair. When he finally stopped Kronos he thought there would be some sort of break but no, Gaea, the big fat bitch, had to cause a ruckus and take him away from his mother and possibly kill his friends.

"You going to be all right?" Annabeth asked him comfortingly as she wrapped her hand into his.

"Yeah, just give me a sec."

"Percy, your mom is so cool," said Thalia reminiscing that one winter that seemed so long ago.

"Yeah, your mom is cool but not as cool as mine," said Leo.

"Leo," Piper snapped as she elbowed him in the ribs.

"Ow," Leo protested but he was stared down by Piper's eyes.

"Bull crap, your mom's got nothing on my mom!" Frank said.

"You wanna bet?"

"Bring it Santa Clause's helper."

"Don't even start beast boy."

"Will you ladies either shut up or get a room?" Grover said exasperated.

"Oh, so goat boy wants a piece of this too," Leo said.

"Am I going to have to open up a can of whoop-ass?" Jason sighed.

Piper and Hazel looked at each other, "Boys."

Tyson, "More Peanut-butter."

"Everyone shut up!" Thalia shouted but no one did and the friendly argument turned into friendly joking.

Annabeth rolled her eyes and looked back at Percy, "Everything fine?"

Percy smiled, "Yeah, everything is going to be just fine."

He shook head with a grin, started the car, and began the drive from Manhattan to Camp Half-Blood. The whole way he listened to his friends argue, talk, and laugh. The whole idea of being sad and angry left his mind. He had the best friends that a person could ever want and Percy realized something. He would die for all of them and he knew they would the same. Percy just hoped that it wouldn't come to that.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	9. Rise and Shine

It was that beautiful time of the day before the sun rose, the tide of the ocean receded back and forth like a tranquil hula dancer on the shores of Camp Half-Blood, the birds chirped merrily, Peleus the dragon snored sleepily, and the Grunts were strewn about in sleeping bags of the grass fields of the camp. The scene that morning was one of serenity and peace. Nothing could have made it more peaceful and nothing could have disturbed it.

BONG! BONG! BONG! BONG! Gleeson Hedge and an army of harpies paraded through the masses of sleeping bags while pounding pots and pans together. Most of the Grunts shot upright out of their sleeping bags in shock. Others groaned and moaned while they cowered under the covers, begging for more sleep.

"RISE AND SHINE, ITS BUT WHIPPING TIME!" yelled Coach Hedge into his megaphone while he continued to bang two pot lids together like cymbals as if he was in a marching band.

Those who did not wake in time had their sleeping bags ripped off of them and were doused in a buckets of ice cold water. Hedge would bend down and scream in that person's face with his megaphone. "WAKE UP SLEEPY HEAD!"

"Move it, move it, on the double! I want you in your proper physical training clothing in less than two minutes."

Leo was almost out of his sleeping bag just before a wave of freezing water hit him in the face.

Leo sighed in defeat while wiping the water from his eyes, "I was up ALREADY!"

"I know, you just stink." Coach Hedge giggled.

Eventually everyone was up on their feet and ready, or as ready as a person could be after being scared awake. The Grunts yawned and rubbed the sleep out of their eyes as they formed their ranks.

A demigod looked at his watch and huffed in protest, "Its barley five o'clock in the morning."

Hedge ignored all the whining and spoke into his megaphone, "GOOD MORNING CUPCAKES!"

"Good morning Coach Hedge," the Grunts managed to exasperate in their zombie like state.

"I can't HEAR YOU!"

"GOOD MORNING COACH HEDGE!"

"That's more like it! Now, LET'S DO THIS!" Coach Hedge whooped as he started to jog away with the Grunts following him.

They first started off with a nice long run along the beach in the ocean's freezing cold water. The temperature of the water chilled their bones and the current kept on knocking them back and forward, fighting them the whole way down the shore, causing them to slip and fall from time to time. The only person who didn't seem to mind the water was Percy but unlike everyone else he didn't get the luxury of feeling the shock of ice water to wake him up.

As the Grunts ran, Coach Hedge rode in a chariot next to them yelling insults through his megaphone.

"Is that all you got Snowball?"

"Come on, my grandma runs faster than you and she's dead!"

"Can you go any slower?"

After the ice water run through the ocean, they ran laps around the Camp's borders. The numbness from the freezing water began to recede which left their bones aching and their bodies shivering. Coach Hedge continued his barrage of insults.

"Do you need a blanket cupcake?"

"Are you going to cry? Cry for me then baby!"

"You run like you got sticks up your butts!"

Then Hedge began to sing military cadences. The Grunts would listen to Hedge sing out a line and then he would wait for them to echo it back, and then he would sing the next line. Some of the cadences went like this:

"I don't know what I've been told.

(echo)

Running in the ocean is mighty cold.

(echo)

I love training under the Heroes of Old

(echo)

They make me shine like Imperial Gold

(echo)

That would be one example. Another would be:

"When my granny was 91 She did PT just for fun.

When my granny was 92 She did PT better than you.

When my granny was 93 She did PT better than me.

When my granny was 94 She did PT more and more.

When my granny was 95 She did PT to stay alive.

When my granny was 96 She kept on doing flutter-kicks.

When my granny was 97 She did PT till 11:00

and

Up in the morning to the risin' sun

Gonna run all day, till' the running's done

Gaea is one big fat bitch

Gonna stick her with my sword and dump her in a ditch

After the laps around the Camp, Hedge directed them to the obstacle course. The obstacle course was full of different structures which included monkey bars, rope swings, balance beams, mud pits, gaps they would have to jump across, walls they would have to vault over, and ladder like walls called the "stairs".

At the end of the obstacle course there was a pool of muddy water that they would have to swim through. Then they would climb out the pool and crawl on their bellies through a muddy pit with barbed-wire above their heads that forced them to keep face down. The pit was littered with pig carcasses which collected swarms of flies after a night spending outside. The smell was even worse. On top of all that, Theseus and Perseus would stand above them while they used the flat of their sword blades to whack the barbed-wire above them. Not only that, rotten tomatoes were thrown at them by Coach Hedge and his army of nymphs.

Once through the obstacle course they would have to do ten pull-ups at the pull-up bars, sprint 100 meters down field, get down and do fifty pushups, then fifty crunches, followed by fifty more pushups, and then fifty more crunches. When they finished all those exercise, it signified that the obstacle course was completed. However the Grunts were force then to run all the way back to the beginning and complete it another two times.

By this time most of the Grunts finished their first run-through of the course, they began to vomit.

"Don't you hurl on my obstacle course, maggot!" yelled Coach Hedge too Octavian who was hunched on his knees trying to hold his throw-up in his mouth.

"I won't sir," Octavian wheezed while his face was turning green. Suddenly, Octavian opened his mouth and out came a geyser of last night's meal, spaghetti. It formed a soppy red puddle on the ground with chunks of not fully chewed meats and vegetables. A lot of it splashed onto Octavian's stark white shoes.

"Are you all right son?" asked Hedge with a look of disgust and a hint of false concern while he patted Octavian's back.

"I think I'll be all right sir," Octavian panted.

"Good," Hedge said pleased. Then into his megaphone, "NOW COMPLETE THIS OBSTACLE COURSE!"

Hedge walked up and down the obstacle course monitoring the progress of his Grunts. If he saw one lagging behind or trying to sneak a break he would yell slanders at them with his megaphone.

Hedge noticed a Grunt who was struggling to climb over one of the walls who was slowing down the whole line. "WHY ISN'T ANYONE HELPING HIM! HELP HIM OVER! YOU'RE A TEAM, ACT LIKE IT!" A few Grunts scrambled forward and helped their buddy over.

When all the Grunts finished the course at least three times, Hedge took them around the Camp perimeter for more laps. This was when the pace began to slow. Their bodies were past the point of cramps and the vomit flowed freely. The Grunts understood why their Generals kept on forcing them to eat last night at dinner. It was to make PT much harder than it already was.

"PAIN IS WEAKNESS LEAVING THE BODY! YOU WILL NOT LAUGH AND YOU WILL NOT CRY! YOU WILL SUFFER AND YOU WILL LOVE IT!"

"LET'S GO, LET'S GO, YOU'RE ALMSOT DONE CUPCAKES!" Hedge would encourage them.

Somehow they made it to Thalia's Tree were they finally stopped. The Grunts collapsed to the ground and sucked in air rapidly to fill their lungs, others puked some more, some chugged their water bottles, and other just laid on the ground unmoving.

"Congratulations, you managed to complete your first day of PT. You are now officially out of my hands." Coach Hedge said proudly. "Tonight, I want you all to have a nice dinner. I think were having Sloppy Joes."

The amount of hurling increased due to the mentioning of the cursed Sloppy Joes.

"It will only get harder from here!" Hedge told them while chuckling.

He got more groans and puking in response.

"PT is now over," announced Achilles in his quite voice. "I want you suited up and with your groups in ten minutes. Dismissed!" Achilles ordered them. "PT may be over but the day hasn't even started yet."

"Yes, sir!" They barley managed to breathe in response in a non uniform fashion.

Achilles looked upon them in awe. They were crushed and exhausted. Their clothes were stained in a rainbow of different colors from mud, blood, sweat, rotten tomatoes, and gallons of vomit. Achilles smiled in delight.

Throughout the day the groups gathered and they trained their hearts out.

Achilles showed his Grunts the best way to skewer opponents with spears and as many as possible at a time. He showed them how to be efficient in the art of spear and shield. He demonstrated the multiple ways one could kill with the deadly combination. Spear thrust, shield bashes, attack with the spear shaft, jabs with the spear's butt, and so forth.

King Leonidas explained how to take on more than one opponent at a time and to how fight forces larger than one's own. He showed how to transition from fighting with a spear to fighting with a sword. He taught them how to fight using each other's bodies and how fellow Grunts were not just team mates but weapons as well. Leonidas was the oil and the Grunts were his cogs.

General Jason showed his Grunts the way of the sword and how it isn't only an effective offensive weapon but a defensive weapon. He showed them how they could twirl their swords around them, turning the blade into a giant revolving fan which would act like a force field. He showed them were swords would insert to an enemy the quickest and he showed them the fastest ways to remove one's blade from an enemy's dead body. He taught them where to cut to dismember body parts the easiest, where to slash to cause them enemies to bleed out, and where to stab to cause instant death.

Hercules showed his Grunts what to do if disarmed and how to continue the fight without even using a weapon. He showed them the Ancient Greek form of hand to hand combat known as Pankration. Killing things with his bare hands was Hercules specialty and he taught it well. He taught them punch combinations, wrestling maneuvers, grapples, and take downs. He showed them how to use opponents' bodies against them.

Bellerophon had his Pegasus riders practice aerial combat, a situation when fighting another flying opponent. He made them run through count less dive-bombing drills. He showed them how to take out enemies on the ground from the skies via spear, bow, sword, etc.

Perseus showed his Grunts how to hide in the shadows and then pounce on unsuspecting enemies with speed and ferocity. He took his Grunts, put them into the woods, and had them find and "kill" each other. He taught them how to kill silently and quickly, and then to disappear like it never even happened.

Odysseus showed his archers how to fire two arrows at once, he showed them how to use arrow volleys strategically, and the use of different types of arrows. He taught them how shoot arrows from behind cover, being crouched, or lying on their stomachs. He even instructed them how to fire arrows coming out of a combat roll. He drilled his Grunts by making them reload and fire over and over again while he screamed in their ear.

Theseus's group was the Grunts who were unsure of themselves. Instead of teaching them something complex and fancy, he showed them how to crush and destroy enemies as efficiently as possible without getting killed. He taught them how to make their enemies cower and submit in fear. Theseus showed them how to use opponents own weights' and strengths against them. He showed them how to find weaknesses and how to exploit it in order to annihilate them. His Grunts where Davids and their suspected enemies were Goliaths.

By the end of the day, the camp was littered with "dead" dummies. They were hacked into pieces by swords, smashed into oblivion by clubs, fists, and shields. They were impaled by spears and pierced by arrows. The Grunts felt as bad as the dummies looked. There wasn't a muscle in a single body that wasn't sore. They had trained for twelve straight hours with only ten minute breaks between each hour. The breaks weren't enough and whenever someone made a mistake, his or her group had to do twenty-five pushups. Needless to say, there was a lot of mistakes made.

The Grunts were barley able to climb out of their armor to take showers. At the dinner table they inhaled their food to make up for the thousands of calories they had lost that day. They thought of having a light dinner in fear of throwing up in PT the next morning but the day had left them starving. They ate like hungry hippos. They needed every morsel of food in order to replenish their energy and then some for the next day of training.

"So," Achilles called from the middle of the mess hall. "You managed to survive the first day but let me remind today was only the foundation. The days that will follow are only going be more difficult. I want you to finish your meal in the next five minutes and on your way out the door eat an ambrosia square which are now being handed out by the nice nymphs. The squares will help with rebuild your muscles faster and ease the pain of the soreness. If it were up to me you would have more days to train and we wouldn't be on such a tight schedule but unfortunately we don't have that luxury. Then there would be no need for these woozy ambrosia squares. Before you got to sleep I would also suggest you to drink a lot of water to rehydrate, mix it with nectar."

"The rest of the night is yours and if I were you, I would use it wisely."

"Have a good night and you're dismissed," he said.

Achilles walked out the door without another word, leaving the Grunts standing on their feet.

"GRUNTS: AHOO, AHOO!" Leonidas shouted.

"AHOO! AHOO!"

* * *

><p>After dinner most of the Grunts crawled straight into their sleeping bags and fell asleep immediately. Others formed little circles around camp fires and shared what teachings that they learned that day and some of their painful experiences. The Stolls set up their usually poker table and the less tired practiced the techniques they learned that day. Percy noticed that Frank and Hazel spent a lot of time at Thalia's Tree, petting Peleus the dragon.<p>

After saying good night to his friends and giving his girlfriend a good night kiss, Percy Jackson went to the lake for a swim. Being in the water always made him feel relaxed and rejuvenated. Percy went into the water aching but after a few laps around the lake, he climbed out onto the dock feeling refreshed and regenerated. On the docks he was surprisingly greeted by Theseus who sat with his legs hanging in the water and it appeared that he had went for a swim as well.

"I'm surprised that you still have the strength to swim after the day you just had," said Theseus. "Especially since you're one of the six demigods in the Great Prophecy. Achilles is really working you six." He shook his head. "Making you participate in every group, humph."

Percy shrugged, "The water makes me feel better."

"Oh, yes! I forgot that you're a half brother of mine and I understand what you mean by being in the water." Theseus said.

Percy's eyebrows shot up. "I thought you are the son of that one king?"

"I share two fathers, one of them being Poseidon."

"Huh?" asked Percy dumbfounded.

"It's a long story but Aegeus is the father that raised me, loved me, and the one I respect. Poseidon is the father who put some of his genes in me so he can claim parentage and make me his tool."

"I see," Percy really didn't see.

"I proved that Poseidon was my father when I swam to the bottom of the ocean to get a Golden Ring that belonged to him. I can't say I'm proud of being a son of the Sea God though."

"Why not?"

"Because the only reason I became his son was so he could use me as tool and show me off to his fellow Gods."

"I sort of understand what you're talking about. I had a friend though, he went crazy because his Godly parent didn't show him off." Percy told him remembering Luke.

Theseus took his turn to shrug his shoulders, "It depends on the person I guess."

"I guess," Percy seconded.

"Do you mind if I have one of these," asked Theseus holding up one of the Coke cans that Percy brought with him.

Percy shook his head, "Hand me one too."

They sat in silence looking at the glistening water with the moon light reflecting of it.

"I've heard stories about you Perseus Jackson. You believe father cares and that's fine but never assume that he loves you, understand?"

"...Sort of but I don't even think he even he cares about me. I know he likes me and thinks I'm a good son, and every once in while when he needs something done he'll ask me to do it." Percy told him.

"Exactly," Theseus agreed. "Do you know how many children Poseidon has? He must have the most out of any God; cyclops, horses, nymphs, spirits and monsters alike. He doesn't care about us, all he cares about is himself."

"I think he is a nicer God compared to others," said Percy recollecting unpleasant memories of Hera, Ares, Athena, Artemis, Hades….

Theseus looked at Percy sternly. "None of the Gods are nice Jackson. There is no difference between Titan, God, monster, mortal, or Giant. We...they all look out for themselves. We only have ourselves in our best interest. Trust me, I know." Theseus spoke in pain as his mind drifted to his personal history. "We create only to destroy."

Percy didn't know how to respond to that and he didn't believe it. Percy cared about Annabeth, his mom, and all his friends. He was going to bitterly tell Theseus that he didn't know what he was talking about but Percy held his tongue_._ Together they just sat in silence on the dock, watching the constellations while drinking the brown carbonated sugar water.

Percy looked down at his feet pondering on what Theseus just told may. It gave more clues on why Theseus and the other Heroes of Old are the way they are but it didn't explain everything. Percy was going to ask Theseus more about his past but Theseus stood to his feet.

"Beverages of this time period are quite refreshing," said Theseus as he crushed his can and skipped it across the lake. "Good night and good luck Jackson."

Percy was left sitting at the docks by himself with his feet hanging in the water, sipping on a Coke can, thinking about what he just learned about his great-great-great-great...half-brother.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	10. The Prophecy of Seven

For the last three days the training continued and each day the Grunts improved. By the fourth day of training, no one threw up during PT and there was no extra push ups done that day because there was zero mistakes made. Every night the Grunts went bed less sore and less exhausted. They reached the point where they felt they could keep on going even after training was over. Each day the Grunts were beginning to act more and more as a team, a unit, a whole body. They began to get along with each other and the tension had died between the Romans and the Greeks, the Amazons trusted the males a little more, the Hunters tolerated working with boys, and the satyrs were mocked no longer.

On the fourth night of training after dinner, Percy, Leo, Jason, Frank, Grover, Tyson, and Ella were spending their free time in the cafeteria on the lower decks of Argo II. Jason and Percy were sparring together, Frank would turn into a different animal and Grover would proceed to speak to him in the language of that creature, Tyson and Ella were in the corner chatting and giggling, and Leo was tinkering away at a cannon.

"Good one," Jason said after Percy disarmed him. Jason's gladius skidded across the floor of the ship and stopped at one of the entrances to the cafeteria.

Jason walked across the room to pick up his sword. Before he could grab it another person's fingers wrapped around the hilt and handed it to him. It was Perseus, who had just boarded the ship. He was accompanied by the rest of the Heroes of Old, Lupa, Chiron, Piper, Annabeth, Hazel, Thalia, Reyna, Octavian and Rachel. The people who entered wore somber expressions, except Octavian and the Heroes of Old. Octavian was fuming while the Heroes of Old donned their usual faces of indifference.

"We need to speak with you," Chiron said.

"Just me?" asked Jason.

"No, all of you," Lupa said pointing her snout to everyone in the room.

"Leo, can you make sure that this area is secure." Chiron nodded to Leo.

"On it," Leo said as he pulled out a Wii remote. Leo pressed one of the buttons on it and doors and windows of the ship closed and locked themselves shut, the cannons retracted from their holes, and their doors closed. "We're good."

"What is it Chiron?" asked Percy.

"Where here to discuss the Great Prophecy," Chiron told them.

Frank's, Percy's, Jason's, and Grover's eyebrows shot up.

"Has someone discovered anything new? Do we know more? Have discovered the whereabouts of Nico? Is there ways to stop Gaea," asked Grover excitedly.

"Don't play dumb goat boy!" Octavian shouted.

"Hey," Grover protested.

"What are you talking about?" Percy asked annoyed.

"That Harpy over there," Octavian pointed accusingly at Ella. "Her memory contains the knowledge of the Sibylline Books and all of you have been keeping it a secret this entire time." Octavian snarled.

"Only Frank, Percy, and I new!" Hazel protested. "Frank, Percy, Ella, I'm sorry but I had to tell someone and I told Annabeth, Annabeth told Rachel, Rachel told Chiron, and Chiron told Lupa. Everyone else found out afterwords."

Frank and Hazel locked eyes. Frank looked at her with understanding. He was always too kind. "It's all right Hazel, we couldn't keep it a secret forever." Percy nodded in agreement.

"Oh, please! We're all tired of this lovey-dovey crap!" Octavian sneered and Lupa barked at him telling him to hold his tongue.

"The only reason we kept it a secret in the first place was so this power hungry, fascist, Hitler Junior, son of bitch couldn't use Ella as a means of getting power." Percy yelled while pointing at Octavian.

Octavian was about to lunge forward but Percy uncapped Riptide and held its point at him.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Chiron shouted. Chiron rarely got angry but when he did it was the one of most terrifying thing a body could ever experience. "Mr. Octavian, if I were you I would restrain yourself before the Defeater of Kronos cuts off your head. After, only after, Mr. Jackson kills you will I allow Odysseus to put an arrow through his eyes."

Octavian stepped backward and Percy looked over Odysseus who had an arrow trained on him. Percy recapped Riptide and put it back in his pocket. They both starred daggers at each other but Percy's wolf-stare prevailed and Octavian uncomfortably broke eye contact and looked to the floor.

After Chiron deemed the two were calm, he cleared his throat and looked to Rachel. "If you would be so kind Ms. Dare, could you please explain what your intentions are."

Rachel stepped forward. "Annabeth and I were talking earlier and I told her a part of the Prophecy of Seven but we're not telling anyone till we hear the prophecy in its entirety. The only one who knows it in its full length is Ella. In order to learn it from her, Hitler Junior and I would need to combine each others powers."

"And how do you intend on doing that?" Jason asked.

Rachel hesitated, while squirming with much discomfort said, "I need to look into Ella's eyes while Hitler Junior inspects her with in."

"What?" Leo asked confused.

Octavian rolled his eyes and yelled, "For Gods' sake. Mortal over here is going to do her Delphi thing to Bird Brains while I cut her open and read her entrails! AND STOP CALLING ME HITLER JR!"

Protest erupted from everyone who had't already known what their true intentions were. That meant it was just Jason, Percy, Grover, Frank, Grover, and Tyson who were enraged because everyone else knew the plan from the beginning.

"That's messed up!" Leo shivered. "The Hitler Junior thing is funny but cutting her open..."

Tyson roared and jumped in front of Ella. "NO!"

Since the newcomers entered the room, Ella had been unusually quite but now she started to go ballistic. She flew in the air while screaming randomly. "Entrails, intestines, seventeen feet and thirty-five inches, eighty-eight point eight centimeters, metric system, Europe, England, Queen Elizabeth!"

The Heroes of Old drew their weapons at Tyson's sudden violent reaction, Reyna and Octavian did as well, Lupa barked, and everyone else jumped to Tyson's defense with their weapons drawn.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Percy shouted with his hands raised. "Everyone can just chill out! Put the weapons away and we cant talk about this without getting killed. Let's do this peacefully."

Ella: "World peace, hippies, drugs, LSD, the Beatles, ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE!"

Reluctantly but slowly the weapons were put down but continued to remain drawn.

"Look what you did jackass!" Frank shouted at Octavian while pointing upwards to the frantic Ella. "I would know a jackass when I see one because I can turn into one."

"That was stupid," Octavian replied.

Everyone looked up to Ella zooming across the celling of the ship's lower deck. She was zipping from corner to corner while she spouted out random facts.

"The Jackass is another name for donkey, the symbol for the American Republican party, George W. Bush, War on Terrorism, 911, New York City, ILH, Mount Olympus."

"Holy crap she's like a Bing commercial," Leo mumbled.

"How are we going to get her down?" the original Jason asked.

"I can shoot her," Odysseus recommended.

Everyone glared at him and Tyson looked as if he was going to break his spine in half. Percy wondered how his half-brother was controlling himself.

"Good idea," Octavian agreed.

"Oh, if Hitler Junior thinks it's a good idea then that means it's a terrible one," Odysseus said with disgust while putting an arrow back in his quiver.

"Somebody! Please help her!" Tyson whined.

"Frank, can't you... turn into a bird and get her down?" Hercules asked.

"Even if I turned into an African Swallow I doubt I could even catch her," Frank answered. "Did you see how much coffee she drank this morning?"

"Got any ideas Wise Girl?" Percy asked Annabeth.

Ella burst into another one of strings of facts: "Wise, wisdom, Aristotle, philosophers, ancient civilizations, Rome, Gods, goddess of Wisdom, Minerva!"

"Wait, what did she say?" Theseus said.

Thalia told him, "She said something about The Beatles. Personally I think Green Day is better-"

Theseus cut her off, "No, she said something about Minerva."

Ella: "Minerva, the roman goddess of Wisdom, Greek Gods, Athena, Greeks, children of the gods, demigods, half-blood hill, daughter, Annabeth Chase!"

Suddenly Ella's body began to convulse violently in midair causing her fall to the floor. Shell fell like a rock at hit the floor with a sold thud. On the deck she began to flop like a fish out of water. Tyson ran forward to help her but Hercules intercepted him and held him back with a bear hug before he could reach her. Ella began screaming out in Ancient Greek with a combination of Latin. Her screaming stopped and so did the convulsions. She laid motionless on the ground with everyone looking upon her limp body in silent awe and shock.

"ELLA!" Tyson screamed over and over again. If it weren't for Tyson's screaming, the ship would have been deathly silent. Hercules put Tyson into a sleeper hold and choked him until he went unconscious. Hercules gently lowered Tyson's the floor.

"Hey," Percy said in protest.

"Would you rather I let him go on a rampage and possibly hurt every one of us or worse...we end up killing him?" Hercules asked while gesturing to Odysseus and Bellerophon who had their bows at the ready.

Percy shook his head.

"What in Hades just happened?" Reyna asked wide eyed.

"Is she... dead," Piper asked.

"No, I can still feel her life force," answered Hazel. "Besides, I can see she's still breathing."

Theseus turned to Rachel and said, "Your up."

Rachel looked at him with uncertainty in her eyes and shook her head. Theseus stepped toward her and put his hands on her shoulders. He looked into Rachel's bright green eyes with his dark green ones with intensity.

"You can do this Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Oracle of Delphi," He told her encouragingly.

Rachel nodded her head with a new confidence, as if Theseus was her fuel, and she stepped gingerly to Ella's body. She placed a hand on the harpy's forehead. Octavian stepped forward as well but no one protested against it. They knew that Octavian was needed in order to make what ever they were going to do work. Rachel held out her other hand to him and he took it. Everyone else held their breathes in anticipation.

At first nothing happened, causing Rachel and Octavian to share quizzical glances. Then suddenly both their heads were violently flung backward as they looked toward the heavens. Green smoke poured from Rachel's mouth and filled the room. Pain stabbed into everyones heads which caused them to sink to one knee and hold the their skulls delicately. Images of the past, present, and future filled the room. The green smoke seemed to have affect a greater affect of the Heroes of Old.

Each Hero of Old saw something different. Hercules relived the painful massacre of his family which was caused by his own hands. Theseus watched in horror as his father fell to his death from a cliff and felt the feelings of remorse and regret when he left Ariadne behind. Bellerophon saw all the faces that slandered him after he failed to fly to the top of Mount Olympus. Leonidas watched arrow volley after volley strike unrelentingly into his Spartans. Achilles looked upon his own wedding that was interrupted as an arrow flew into his heel. Perseus looked into Medusa's eyes and he became a statue and was forced to watch Andromeda marry a different man. Odysseus was shown an image of his son and wife and then an image of Calypso, he was forced to choose. Jason watched as his greed caused him to hate his true love, Medea, and then to marry someone else. They were forced to relieve the horrible memories, see themselves commit unforgivable atrocities, watch opportunities slip out of their hands, and recalculate their decisions. The Heroes of Old curled on the floor as they moaned in agony.

Then the green smoke climbed into their eyes, ears, noses, and mouths while the ghostly, eerie, shrieking voice entered their minds.

_Child of Lightning, beware the earth,_

_The giants' revenge the seven shall birth,_

_The forge and dove shall break the cage,_

_And death unleash, through Hera's rage._

_To the North, beyond the gods, lies the legion's crown._

_Falling from ice, the son of Neptune shall drown._

_The legends return,_

_And much they will yearn._

_Repent for their sins,_

_In order to save their kin._

_Absolve for their crimes,_

_To live in bliss for all time._

_Wisdom's daughter walks alone,_

_The Mark of Athena burns through Rome._

_The seventh is revealed,_

_Who was hidden behind a shield._

_The Child of Strife armed with a knife,_

_Will help save a life._

_Seven half-bloods shall answer the call._

_To storm or fire, the world must fall._

_An oath to keep with a final breath,_

_And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death._

Rachel and Octavian's mouths slammed shut, the witch's voice ceased, and the green smoke dissipated. Everyone found themselves lying on the floor sweating and panting; slowly they climbed to their feet.

"Holy crap!" Frank murmured out of breath. "That was the spookiest experience of all time."

"Creepy," Piper, Leo, Hazel, and Grover agreed in unison.

"You get used to it after a couple times. It was worse when we had our old oracle." Percy told them. "Grover, remember when we had to carry her up the stairs into the attic."

"Don't remind me," Grover puffed.

Chiron was as calm as ever, Lupa remained her stern self, Thalia and Annabeth were shivering a little but this wasn't their first cake walk, Reyna looked a bit shaken up, Rachel and Octavian were surprisingly doing well but were gasping for air, and Tyson and Ella remained unconscious.

The Heroes of Old though, saying that, "They looked as if they had just seen a ghost" would be an understatement. All of them were pale white and where drenched in cold sweat. They where going through what appeared to be shock and were suffering massive trauma. They laid on the floor in curled up balls whispering to themselves.

After a few moments of recovery, Annabeth stood up and got out a piece of paper and re-wrote the prophecy they had just heard. She recited the whole thing again.

"What! That's all the information we know already," said Leo ungratefully.

"You're forgetting the whole two extra stanzas," Piper told him.

"Basically everything was put into to order," Reyna said. "Its like one long song, an epic poem."

"Like the Odyssey," Percy said.

"Sort of," said Annabeth. "All the other information we already know. We need to focus on the new stuff," Annabeth ordered them.

"Fine, first things first, we need to separate the new parts." Thalia said.

Rachel recited them in a monotonous voice:

_The Legends return,_

_And much they will yearn._

_Repent for their sins,_

_In order to save their kin._

_Absolve for their crimes,_

_To live in bliss for all time._

_Wisdom's daughter walks alone,_

_The Mark of Athena burns through Rome._

_The seventh is revealed_

_Who was hidden behind a shield._

_The Child of Strife armed with a knife,_

_Will help save a life._

"Wow, that's actually not vague for the first time in history." Percy said sarcastically. "The Fates finally decided to cut out the hocus-pocus crap."

"I'm not one too discuss the meaning of prophecies but I'll take a swing at it," volunteered Jason Grace. "The first part is talking about the Heroes of Old obviously. They have been brought back to make up for all the bad things they did in their last life. The 'save their kin' part could mean us, the modern heroes." Jason Grace said.

At the sound of them being mentioned the Heroes of Old flinched. They were still in their state of anguish, huddling on the ground in the fetal position murmuring about events in their lives.

"Are they going to be okay?" Leo asked looking at them.

"They'll be fine," said Chiron with a hint of concern. "Right now we need to focus on this prophecy."

Everyone nodded and this time Reyna took the reins. "The next part is about a child of Athena or Minerva. Most likely Athena because the prophecy said the 'Mark of Athena.'"

All eyes fell upon Annabeth.

"Why does everyone assume it's me?" asked Annabeth a bit irritated. "I have other siblings you know."

"Well, your kind of the only one that matters." Percy said.

"I'll take that as a compliment." Annabeth said with a sarcastic smile.

Percy shrugged.

"Before Ella started to go all epileptic she did mention Annabeth's name," Piper put in.

All eyes went back to Annabeth. Annabeth wished she had her Yankees cap to make herself go invisible.

"Annabeth's right, it could mean any one of Athena's other children," said Grover trying to be helpful.

"Yes, I think it would be wise-pardon me for the pun-for us to move on to the next section," Lupa suggested. "It doesn't help to linger too longly on a single part. I do think it would be best for you to be more careful Annabeth and warn you brothers and sisters as well."

Annabeth nodded but deep down inside she wished she was the one in the prophecy. She didn't want to seem self-centered but she had a feeling the line in the prophecy was about her and strangely she wanted it to be about her.

"Whats next?" Octavian finally spoke up, "Something about the seventh being revealed, a Child of Strife armed with a knife?"

"A Child of Strife? Wait, who is the God of Strife?" asked Hazel.

"That could mean any number of Gods," said Rachel. "It could be Ares, Athena, Phobos, Deimos, and so on."

They sat in silence pondering on who it could be. They went through a list of the Twelve Olympians and the Minor Gods.

"It's Eris," Achilles told them unexpectedly as he weakly stood to his feet.

Apparently he had broken out of his traumatic state. The color in his skin returned but he still seemed uneasy and nervous. The rest of the Heroes of Old were returning back to normal but they seemed edgy as well.

"Who?" Leo asked.

"Eris, the Goddess of discord and Chaos, the Lady of strife," Achilles answered softly as he looked off into space in remembrance.

"Her Roman name is Discordia," Lupa told them.

Achilles nodded his head. "She is the reason there was a Trojan War in the first place. She caused it and by doing so she killed many, many people. She destroyed an entire civilization and created an ocean of blood for her own amusement...All over a worthless apple," Achilles drifted off.

"Who ever this 'Child of Strife' is, they will only bring doom." Achilles said pensively.

"I fought in the Trojan War as well, Eris is not good news." Odysseus agreed.

"But this demigod is supposed to be final of the seven, sir." Reyna said. "Seven half-bloods are supposed to answer the call and this offspring of Eris is one of them."

Achilles shook his head. "That may be true but I only fear death will come with this half-blood."

"We are going to war sir, death is a guarantee," Thalia reminded him.

"The prophecy also says this person will save a life," Jason added.

"The only life they will save is their own," Achilles said dryly.

"But the prophecy-" Octavian bleated.

"-And you still look to prophecies for guidance after all they have done for us?" Hercules said incredulously.

"They only bring pain and sorrow," the original Jason added.

"They are made by the Gods and the Fates who are selfish liars and tyrants," said Bellerophon. "The only heroes in history who ever had a happy ending where Odysseus and Perseus but they had to suffer their whole lives from torments dealt by the Gods."

"Nothing ever good comes of depending on prophecies or trying to avoid them," Theseus spoke. "What matters is using your own skill and abilities in order to stay alive and fight for what you love. I know all of you understand this."

The other Heroes of Old nodded in agreement.

"The events that just happened in this room stays within the confines of this ship and is not to be told anyone else. Annabeth Chase may warn her siblings but that is all," Achilles ordered them.

"What do I say about this prophecy?" Achilles asked rhetorically. "I say that we 'Heroes of Old' will do what we were sent here to do and get what is rightfully ours in return. We will keep our end of the bargain with Gods and that's all we will do. Hopefully we do not get cheated again. If this _prophecy_ does intertwine with our job, so be it. We were forced to relive some horrific events again today that we wished remained buried. It was a cruel thing for the Fates to do but that is how they are."

"Tomorrow after PT and a couple hours of training there will be a capture the flag game between The Heroes of Old and the Grunts. It will be the Grunts final test to see if they are ready. Make your fellow Grunt's aware please. Good night and you are dismissed."

The Heroes of Old walked out of the Argo II mournfully with their heads hung low. Leonidas stopped at the door and was about to lead an "Ahoo" chant but he thought otherwise and merely waved his hand in defeat and walked out the door.

Percy, Jason, Annabeth, Grover, Frank, Hazel, Rachel, Leo, Piper, Reyna, Chiron, Lupa, and Octavian where left there sitting in silence.

"I don't even no what to believe anymore," Frank sighed.

Everyone nodded their silent agreement and sighed as well.

"What I miss?" Tyson said as he sat upright rubbing his head and yawning.

"I miss Nico," Hazel said randomly. Her mind was continuing on the path of Achilles's doom and gloom speech. She was remembering sad memories and Nico was a thought that came up.

Percy sighed again, "Come on you guys, let's go tell everyone about the capture the flag game tomorrow." He should've been excited but he wasn't.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	11. CTF

Since the night of hearing the rest of the Prophecy of Seven, Percy's head swirled with thoughts of the new amended parts. Who was this seventh half-blood? Could this child of Eris really be that dangerous?

The question he kept on asking himself though was where was Nico? Nico never really had crossed his mind in the past week because there was so much on his plate as it was. He was more than a little occupied with getting the Romans and Greeks to get a long and then the training for hours every day. The current event in his life were leaving him exhausted, physically and mentally. Percy's apathy to his cousins whereabouts and well being made him feel extremely guilty. He only thought about Nico when Hazel mentioned him the night before. Nico had saved Percy too many times to count and Percy was repaying him by not even giving him a single thought. That was going to change. Percy was going to find Nico and save him, where ever he was. Percy made a silent promise to the Fates insuring them that Nico Di Angelo will be found and saved. Percy's thoughts where interrupted when Clarisse brought him back to reality.

"Hey, Kelp Head, are you even listening?" Clarisse snapped at him.

"Uh, yeah, what ever," he fumbled.

Clarisse rolled her eyes and continued speaking.

Annabeth nudged him gently, "Where did you go off to?"

"Hmm, oh, I was thinking about Nico."

"Don't worry, we'll find him," Annabeth reassured Percy.

"Yeah, I know but will he be in one piece when we do?"

"HEY!" Clarisse yelled at them as she chucked a book in their direction.

Percy and Annabeth ducked out of the way. "Geez, sorry!"

Annabeth squeezed his hand supportingly and nodded her head in Clarisse's direction telling him it was time to pay attention.

They were twenty-one demigods in all, sitting around a map of the Forest. These people where the twenty-one Grunts that Achilles promoted to office positions. It was Piper McLean, Percy Jackson, Thalia Grace, Leo Valdez, Jason Grace, Frank Zhang, Butch, Annabeth Chase, Clarisse, Grover, Tyson, Octavian, Hazel Levesque, Reyna, the Stoll Brothers, Will Solace, Phoebe, Dakota, and Hylla. There was also Jimmy and Tommy McDonald, two twins who were sons of Minerva.

They were setting up the plans of attack for the capture the flag game that was being held that day between the Grunts and the Heroes of Old. The difference of this particular game compared to others was that there was only one flag and it was in possession of The Heroes of Old. The flag was located at Zeus's fist and the Grunts mission was to retrieve and secure on their side of the forest. The Grunts' plan was to split their forces into groups and each sect would assault from various directions.

"Like I was saying before we got rudely interrupted: Annabeth who is in charge of Leonidas's Grunts and me, who is in charge of Achilles's group will lead the assault on the right flank. Grace who is in command of the original Jason's group and they will go through the center with Zhang in command of Hercules's Grunts. Butch and Reyna will take Bellerophon's Pegasi Riders and will give us aerial support, Solace and Phoebe in charge of Odysseus's archers will provide covering fire. The Grunts who were under the command of Perseus and were training in stealth combat will be lead by the Stoll brothers. Their job will be to slip by enemy lines undetected and strike if an opportunity presents itself.

"That leaves Percy Jackson who is in charge of Theseus's Grunts. Your assignment will be to hold the Creek. If one of us grabs the flag we will fallback to your position. The Creek is the boarder-line and once we cross that with the flag, we win. Percy, you and your Grunt's job will be to protect the flag bearer and get them across the boarder safely."

Percy nodded, the job he was given was meant to be a punishment for his previous interruption. It was a relatively simple job, meant for the weakest members, and there wasn't really any action. If Percy was assigned this job a few years back, he would have been irritated. He didn't complain though because he enjoyed to think of himself as mature. The assignment wasn't the most luxurious or exciting job but it was job nonetheless and the Grunts were a team. Each player had a part and if they didn't perform it, they would all fail. Besides, the Creek was water, water he could control, and that's where he would be the strongest. He also knew that things were going to be pretty hectic once the flag was in Grunt control. He and his Grunts would be needed there. Clarisse's intentions worked both ways, a punishment for Percy but a strategic advantage.

"The rest of you who were not made group leads will join any of your choosing and will act as second in command."

"I don't understand why were getting so worried," said Octavian. "There are seven-hundred of us and forty of them."

"You weren't the guy who almost got stretched in two," Frank told him.

"Nor did you get knocked out by taking an arrow to the face," Will Solace added.

Several other voices joined in as well. They all came from some of the contenders who participated in the Moderns vs Originals Contests that took place at Camp Jupiter. They all had the scars to prove it.

"Okay, I get it," Octavian said in exasperated understanding.

Clarisse nodded her head in readiness. "Valdez how are we on armor and weapons?"

Leo held two thumbs up meaning, "Ready as they would ever be."

"All right then, gather your warriors, tell them their assignments, and let's win this thing!"

"AHOO! AHOO!"

* * *

><p>"If the Grunts cannot retrieve the flag within an hour or if all their warriors are eliminated, they lose! If the flag is recovered before time runs out, they win!" Yelled Chiron explaining the rules.<p>

"Lupa, her wolves, and I will serve as official referees and medics. The flag must be kept in plain sight on top of Zeus's Fist. There will be no killing of any kind. If you are severely wounded, Lupa's wolves or an eagle will pull you off the battlefield and take you to the medical tent. You are eliminated if you are disarmed, knocked unconscious, or your injuries are so severe that you cannot continue fighting. If you are caught breaking the rules you are eliminated! Any questions?"

No questions.

"The game will begin at the sound of my horn! Warriors to your positions!"

The Heroes of Old walked into the woods and headed to where they placed their flag on top of Zeus's fist. The Grunts walked in the opposite direction to their starting point on the other side of the forest. The creek served as the boundary line, where if the Grunts managed to bring the flag over it, they win.

The Grunts organized their soldiers into their respective positions and they anticipated the sound of Chiron's horn. The final moments before the start of the game were oddly peaceful. The woods were unmoving and only the sound of the birds chirping and the wind rustling the leaves of the trees could be heard. The exterior may have been quite but the interior was the opposite. Inside the mind of the Grunts, a riot was brewing. Their heart rates increased and echoed deep within their chest, pounding like drums. Their minds raced as they remembered their assignments and the butterflies fluttered inside their stomachs.

Chiron's horn blasted through the entire camp signifying the start of the game.

"AHOO! AHOO!" Clarisse screamed.

"AHOO! AHOO!" The Grunts echoed back shaking the very sky to rumble.

They charged forward causing the ground to shake. Each group went their separate directions to carry out the task they were given.

The Pegasi riders exploded from the ground and rocketed up to the clouds. Annabeth and Clarisse took their soldiers right. Jason and Frank's troops went straight. The Stoll brothers rallied their Grunts and took off into the woods seeming to melt into the shrubbery. Will Solace and Phoebes archers hung back and began firing random arrows into woods laying down covering fire. They first fired a few volleys before eventually running in to their forest behind their fellow Grunts. If they got lucky they might have even hit something.

"What's your order sir?" asked one of the McDonald brothers.

"Follow me to the creek," Percy ordered glumly.

Inside the forest, the Grunts did not know what to expect from their opponents but they only assumed for the worse. As soon as the first lines of the Grunts stepped over the boarder, crushing leaves and branches under foot, they came under a hail of arrows. Fifteen of them were eliminated in that instant. Immediately after, another volley of arrows came crash landing down on them taking out another ten. The Grunts raised their shields in time for the third volley. They may have avoided losing more of their numbers but stopping to protect themselves from overhead arrows paused the forward assault altogether.

"It's Odysseus!" Someone yelled.

"Bellerophon!" Another said pointing into the air.

Bellerophon swooped down into their ranks, a blur, while ramming into a whole line. He arched upward and stopped above the trees tops while he picked off Grunts with his bow. The Pegasi Riders spotted him from the clouds and dived toward him. Bellerophon flew to a safe distance and the Riders pursued him.

"No, stop! Its trap!" Jason yelled to the Pegasi Riders.

The Grunts on the ground watched as the Riders chased after him. Bellerophon led them up, down, left, right, did some loops, and pulled off corkscrews. He led them on a wild goose chase for a few moments but suddenly stopped above Zeus's Fist. Before the Riders were upon him he zoomed away. When the Riders passed over Zeus's Fist, a volley of spears and javelins flew up at them. The Riders expected the trap and they dodged out of the way. However they didn't account Bellerophon to double back and flank them. He fired five arrows in rapid succession and all of them hit their mark.

Jason Grace and Thalia looked at each other and nodded. They outstretched their hands toward Bellerophon. Lightning bolts exploded out of the sky, Bellerophon managed to deflect most of the bolts with his spear but one streak of lightning managed to get through and shocked him. This gave the Riders enough time to correct themselves and pursue him again.

"Bellerophon is distracted! The sky is clear! This is our chance. Shield Canopy, forward!" Clarisse ordered.

The Grunts raised their shield above their heads like umbrellas and marched forward. Any arrows fired by Odysseus merely bounced off of them. In order to soften up the canopy Odysseus fired special arrows such as sonic boomers, gas arrows, and stink bombs. However his attempt were futile and merely eliminated a few Grunts at a time and had no real affect on the overall pace of their assault.

The Grunts were making good progress for a time, but suddenly, without warning the whole left flank exploded. Shouts and screams broke out, the sound of clanging metal rang, and shields flew into the air.

Perseus was using his Helm of Invisibility to sneak past the Grunt lines and then attacked from the inside. He eliminated five Grunt's with the first swing of his sword and then two more with a second one. Before they could retaliate, he would disappear, and then attack from a different spot. When the Grunts caught on to his pattern, he used his Hermes Boots to fly into the air to get out of harms way. He would go invisible again and reappear somewhere else dealing massive amounts of damage. He whirled with his sword and bashed with his shield. If he was about to be overwhelmed he waved his concealed Medusa's head in the air causing the Grunts to reel back in fear. By the time they realized it was just a trick, he had already disappeared.

Perseus had a cumulative of at least forty eliminations and he would have had more if it wasn't for Frank Zhang who came to the rescue. He turned into a flying squirrel and pounced onto Perseus's head and ripped off his Helm. Frank crawled down to Perseus's legs and managed to pull off one of his boots. This threw off his flight pattern causing him to hang upside down in midair while zooming in random directions. The Grunts brought him to the ground, swarmed him, and eventually forced him to surrender by inflicting blows upon his body.

They couldn't celebrate just yet because another volley from Odysseus fell from the sky taking out a dozen more Grunts followed by Bellerophon who swooped down on them again. He crashed into the whole right flank and eliminated ten in the process. Behind him was the pursuing Riders. They couldn't slow themselves due to their momentum and they crashed into the right flank and took out some of their fellow Grunts.

The volleys continued and the Grunts went back to their shield canopy. Bellerophon and Odysseus's arrow volleys had slowed their progression speed in half. Advancing with the shield canopy was like walking in quick sand.

"Forget this, we have greater numbers, to Zeus's Fist, CHARGE!" Thalia shouted.

The Grunts disregarded their own safety and ran forward. They crashed through the vegetation as arrows rained from the sky. They made it surprisingly far without taking many losses with Zeus's Fist nearly in sight. It wasn't going to be that easy though. They were intercepted by the original Jason and Theseus. They cut through the first twenty Grunts and then began combat with the next wave. Behind them exploded Hercules who was hidden behind some boulders. He crashed through a dozen Grunts and felled another dozen with a single punch. Theseus, Jason, and Hercules had the element of surprise, however they lost it quickly, and they were pushed back. The original Jason, Theseus, and Hercules were forced to retreat to Zeus's Fist.

Zeus's Fist was surrounded by the Spartans and Achilles who had their shields locked together with their spears pointing out, it resembled a porcupine. On top of Zeus's Fist was Odysseus firing arrow after arrow into the Grunts' ranks. Next to him was the flag.

"LOCK SHIELDS!" Clarisse ordered.

The front line locked shields making an impenetrable wall. The ranks behind them held their shields overhead in order to defend from overhead attacks. Odysseus fired arrows but they bounced off their shields harmlessly.

"ARCHERS!" Clarisse called.

Will Solace came crashing through the woods with his archers behind him. They were now in range to fire accurately. All one-hundred archers fired their bows directly at Odysseus. Odysseus jumped off of Zeus's Fist, out of harms away. The arrows zoomed inches over his head. They either harmlessly soared through the air, crashed into the stone of Zeus's Fist, skidded in the dirt, or bounced off of the Spartans shield wall.

With Odysseus pinned down by the archers, the Grunts were able to move freely.

"CHARGE!" Screamed Clarisse, the Grunt shield line broke and they ran forward.

The Grunts rushed toward the Spartan shield wall and with every stride they got closer and closer. The Spartans readied their spears and braced for impact. They were used to fighting numbers greater than their own. They were made famous for the Battle of Thermopylae, where 300 Spartans held off 300,000 Persians for three days without reinforcements. They weren't fighting amateur Persians this time. They were fighting highly trained warriors that they had trained themselves. As the Grunts approached, the Spartans dug in their heels and prepared combat.

The two opposing forces collided together. Shields rammed into each other, spears dented shields, and shouting was drowned out by the sound of metal contacting with metal. The two sides pushed against each other, forcing each other back and forth. The Spartans gave one final push and broke their shield line. The back ranks threw their spears taking out a few Grunts, then they drew their swords and began close-quarters combat. Theseus, Jason, Leonidas, and Hercules joined the fray. The Grunts drew their short range weapons also and struck back.

Before the archers could open fire upon the exposed Heroes of Old, Bellerophon dived down from them from the sky. He jumped off Pegasus, hit the ground rolling, and pulled the spear off his back, all in one motion. He came to his feet swinging and took out a couple archers. He spun his spear like a staff and whacked away at his unsuspecting victims. They turned to fire on him at close range but he was to fast. The Riders chasing him tried to shoot at him from the air. Odysseus noticed the archers were busy fighting Bellerophon which allowed Odysseus to shoot at the Riders which he began picking off.

The Grunts and the Originals seemed to be at a stalemate. Neither sides were taking losses and neither side was gaining ground. Spartans fought five Grunts at a time. The Grunts couldn't eliminate the Spartan and the Spartan couldn't bring down a single Grunt.

The battle could have lasted ages with neither side being the victor but the Grunts didn't have ages, they only had an hour, even less now that the game had been going on for a while.

* * *

><p>Chiron's horn blasted two times letting them know that there was only twenty minutes left. The Grunts were going to have to do something quick in order to get that flag and the Heroes of Old were going to have to just hold out for a little longer and they would be the victors.<p>

"Twenty minutes left and still no sign of them," Piper told Percy.

"Yeah, I know." Percy said frowning.

Percy and his a hundred plus Grunts were at the Creek, standing around the past forty minutes doing nothing. He was stuck with the Grunts who really weren't comfortable with any sort of weapon or skill to begin with. This was the group that trained with Theseus. Theseus was an all around fighter meaning he most likely taught them everything. Theseus must have taught them a few of his dirty tricks and that had to count for something.

Percy made a split decision. "Piper you lead all of our Grunts. Leo and I will stay back."

"Me?" Piper asked surprised. "Why?"

"You have the ability to make men do what ever you ask. You have what we call, 'charisma'. Your charisma could even make cyclops swoon."

Piper raised an eyebrow.

"The thing is, all the Originals are men," Percy said with a wink.

* * *

><p>Back at Zeus's fist the fight waged on and now there was only Ten minutes left. Hercules fought off twenty Grunts at once and Jason had his hands tied dueling several different swordsman. Odysseus was in standoff with the archers. They were firing arrows back and forth at each other and it had got to the point where they had to pick up arrows of the ground for ammunition. Theseus ducked and weaved through the waves of enemies dropping them as he went by with his cudgel and defended with his sword. Bellerophon had been eliminated but not before he took the Riders with him. Achilles and Leonidas were protecting the flag, fighting back to back surrounded by a ring of enemies.<p>

Five minutes passed and still the Grunts were making no progress and the Heroes of Old were holding their ground. It seemed as if the Originals were going to hold their ground and pull off the win. Suddenly there was a shift in the battle. Grunt reinforcements had arrived. More soldiers had entered the fight and the Originals found themselves with their hands more than full. They were backed up into Zeus's Fist with only Achilles, Hercules, Odysseus, and fifteen Spartans left. The fought viscously and seemed to care no longer about fighting within the rules. They fought to win.

Hercules picked up a Grunt with one hand and threw him into another five and with the other hand Hercules swung his club and took out six more Grunts. Achilles threw his sword like a throwing knife at Jason Grace's shield causing him to fall over. With the butt of his spear, Achilles whacked him on the head, spun the spear, and whacked Thalia in her stomach. Odysseus was firing the non-lethal arrows point blank into Grunts' faces. Minutes were only left in the game and the Grunts were so close to the flag but yet so far.

From far off Piper screamed, "STOP!" Amazingly, the fighting ceased.

The Grunt ranks parted as she walked through them. The Heroes of Old stood in their fighting stances with their weapons at ready and their eyes darting back and forth between Grunts.

"Put down you weapons," Piper told them.

That sounded like a terrible idea but the Originals did as they were told.

"Odysseus, hand Frank Zhang the flag." She ordered.

Odysseus climbed on top of Zeus's Fist, grabbed the flag, and placed it into Frank's hands.

"Thanks..." Frank said dumbfounded with the banner in his hands.

"Frank turn into a bird and win this game for us." Piper wasn't charm speaking this time.

"Oh, right!" Frank transformed into a massive eagle and took off into the air with the banner in his talons.

Achilles groaned and began slapping himself in the face. "SNAP OUT OF IT!" Achilles yelled. "She's using her Aphrodite powers."

When Achilles mentioned it, Piper started to loose her control. It took a lot of energy influencing this many people at one time. Eventually she would lose concentration and the charm would break.

Piper forced her self to hold on just a few moments more. She watched Frank soar through the air and when it looked like he was far enough she released her hold on the Heroes of Old. She fell to her knees gasping for air.

Odysseus shook his head breaking free of his trance. He realized what was happening, picked up his bow, strung an arrow, and fired. He didn't have time to watch the results of his shot because he was attacked by five Grunts.

Hercules slapped himself in the face to knock himself out of the spell and then took off in Frank's direction, crashing through Grunt shields.

To prevent any more Heroes of Old from pursuing the flag bearer, the Grunts circled around the Heroes of Old and the fighting began again.

* * *

><p>Percy spotted the giant eagle with the flag in it's claws.<p>

"Its Frank!" Percy said with a smile while looking up.

Percy also noticed a black speck chasing Frank. At first Percy thought it was another bird but he was wrong. It was actually an arrow! It was too late for anyone to do anything. It hit its mark smacking into Frank's wing. This caused him to shift back into a human. Frank would've fell to his death if wasn't for Percy's quick thinking. Percy lifted the water out of the creek and before Frank impacted with the ground, Percy placed a floating pool of water under him. Frank splashed into the giant floating puddle. Percy let Frank down gently.

Frank transformed into a dog and shook himself dry. He turned back into a human and picked up the flag.

"Hurry up dude," Percy said urgently. "We're kind of on a tight schedule and people could be follow-"

Hercules was a lightning bolt when he struck Frank. Frank noticed him just in time to turn into an elephant. He was still thrown a good twenty feet and slammed into a pine tree, breaking it out of it's roots and knocking it over. The flag flew up into the air and Hercules moved under it to catch it. However, people felt like being lightning bolts that day. Before Hercules could wrap his hands around it, a streak of brown rammed into him. Hercules flew across the forest like a punted football. He stopped when he hit a tree a three-hundred yards away, and bounced off it onto the ground. He laid on the ground groaning in pain and eventually one of Lupa's wolves' pulled him to safety.

The brown streak turned out to Hazel riding Arion. She smiled proudly but before she could celebrate she was knocked off her horse when an arrow slammed into her shoulder. Odysseus scored a lucky hit all the way from Zeus's Fist.

"Damn he's good!" Frank said in awe now back in human form.

Percy ignored him and scrambled for the flag. The ten-second warning horn blasted across the forest. Percy's fingers were almost around it but someone else had beat him to it. It was Jordan! Jordan was a small girl from the Hebe cabin. She had always been one of the smaller demigods and was never good at fighting. Their eyes met and they smiled. Percy let her take it. She picked it up and carried the flag across the border line. They had done it, the Grunts had won!

The time limit horn sounded and then Lupa her wolves began to howl.

Eventually all the Grunts, the Heroes of Old, the eliminated players, the nymphs, and even the wounded — who limped over to them-gathered around Jordan who held the Flag high in the air.

The Grunts started cheering and chanting, "JORDAN, AHOO, JORDAN, AHOO!"

Chiron held up his hands for silence. "A close finish with only a couple seconds on the clock! The victors of this game are THE GRUNTS!"

Hearty cheering echoed throughout the Forest. It came from Grunts, Originals, nymphs, satyrs, and campers a like.

"I beg to disagree Chiron." Achilles protested firmly when the cheering died down.

A hush hit the crowd like a wall. Were they hearing things right? The Grunts had won fair and square and it was not of Achilles to be...well, a sore loser.

"The Grunts did not win today because these half-bloods, mortals, and satyrs are not Grunts." Achilles said slowly spinning in a circle pointing at the seven-hundred demigods, hunters, Amazons, and Satyrs that stood around him. "NO, THESE WARRIORS ARE NOT GRUNTS!" Achilles repeated, he was roaring now.

"THEY ARE BUT ARGONAUTS!"

Leonidas took on his usual role cheerleader. "ARGONAUTS! AHOO! AHOO!"

"AHOO! AHOO!" The Argonauts chanted back proudly with wide smiles on their faces.

The cheering exploded back to life, the Stoll brothers hoisted Jordan up onto their shoulders, and paraded her around the creek with everyone gathering around and whooping. The cheering lasted on for minutes, people went around patting each other on the back, hugging each other in congratulations, and shaking each other's hands.

Inevitably the cheering to died down again. Even when everyone else was silent, there was still one person who continued to clap. This was not an applaud of joy or of congratulations. It was two hands smacking together creating an almost sarcastic tone.

"The New Argonauts, it has a ring to it," said a female voice.

All heads whipped in the speaker direction, causing a few to suffer severe whiplash.

"HERA!" Hercules, Annabeth, and all of the Heroes of Old sneered.

"YOU WILL PAY!" Hercules screamed and charged at the Goddess.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	12. All Roads Lead to Rome

Hera waited patiently as Hercules charged her. When he was a few feet from taking her; she outstretched a hand and sat him down on his Gluteus Maximus.

"It look likes someone needs a timeout," said Hera and with the flick of her wrist she summoned chains from the ground that wrapped around the enraged hero.

Hercules screamed in wrath while struggling in his bonds. His veins popped out of his skin due to the strain of his clenching muscles upon the chains.

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" His face was turning purple from screaming.

"Hush now child," Hera said. She snapped her fingers and a gag materialized that cover his mouth.

When she deemed he was under control; she diverted her attention away from the large man on the ground to the seven-hundred Argonauts. Hera expected them to be kneeling but instead she found them standing, staring at her expectingly-no, not to her-but to Achilles. They were awaiting his orders not hers. Achilles gestured remained expressionless signifying for them to remain as they were.

"This is how you greet an Olympian?" asked Hera.

No answer.

"Is this display of disobedience because I hat to put this one its place?" She pointed to the bound and gagged Hercules.

She was shot with defiant glares in return.

"Oh, I see what this is. These so called 'Heroes of Old' are spreading their beliefs upon you," she said with a sneer. "What did they tell you? Did they tell you Gods are evil and not be trusted, or did they say we don't care about heroes but only for ourselves?"

"They are simply not kneeling, 'Your Majesty,' because you attacked one of their fellow Argonauts," Achilles told her. "We Argonauts fight for each other and die for each other."

Hera howled with laughter. "Are you referring to Hercules? They actually respect and look up to that monster? Did anyone ever bother to mention how he killed is own family?"

"If I recall, you were the one who influenced him to commit the atrocity," Odysseus pointed out. "Was it because you were jealous of him? That could be the reason why he just tried to kill you, or I could be wrong. I don't know, it's just a theory of mine."

Hera shrugged her shoulders, "Fair enough, but what about what he did to Zoë Nightshade?"

"Who?" Leo asked.

The Hunters of Artemis eyebrows ears perked upon hearing the name of their former leader.

"Oh yes, Zoë Nightshade!" Hera cried sympathetically. "The poor girl that the Mighty Hercules manipulated. He would have never retrieved the Golden Apple if it wasn't for her. Did Hercules ever thank her? Did he even mention her? Did he save her from her tyrannical father? NO! He did nothing for her; even after she gave him one of the most powerful swords in history. If you don't believe anything I'm saying…just ask Percy Jackson He know all about it. He is the current owner of that very sword and it's burring a hole in that pocket or his."

All eyes honed in on Percy. Percy held his glare with Hera and shook his head in disgust. The Hunters looked at Hercules with a newly found hatred. They had just begun to trust men but that was all down the drain now due to the new incriminating evidence.

Hera smirked and continued to speak. "These Heroes of Old that you follow say that we Olympians are the manipulators; the ones who aim to take advantage of you. In reality THEY are the ones who seek to harm you."

The Argonauts continued to look at her with disbelieving eyes.

"Okay," Hera nodded. "Let me educate your infant minds."

"Let us being with Achilles, your top general. He has one of the greatest blood lusts of all time. During the Trojan War, he mercilessly slaughtered men by the thousands in order to fulfill his petty need for revenge. Next we have Bellerophon, the man that is so arrogant he thought he could live with Gods. He flew to Olympus demanding that we were to make him one of us. What a fool! Then we have Hercules, but we already know all about him."

The Hunters continued to stare daggers at the bound and gagged Hercules.

"That brings us to Jason. Not Grace but THE Jason. The Jason that promised to marry Medea but instead decided to appease to his greed and married a rich princess that he had only known for a day. Next we have Leonidas. Can't really complain about him. He's a perfect soldier who follows every order. If you are to look up to one of these men it would best be Leonidas. However, he has decided to start taking audience with his fellow Heroes of Old, and now he is just as defiant as them. Now we have Odysseus. Sure some of you can say that he is the epitome of family man. He was only trying to return to his wife and son; but if he really was the faithful husband, would he have had an affair with every female he met along the way?

"Onto Perseus. I used to like him. He was such a grateful and kind gentleman, even if he was a bastard creation of my arrogant husband. However, he is just like Leonidas. He has spoken with his fellow heroes and has become as scornful and forsaking as they are. Finally, we have Theseus. Theseus can be compared extremely close to the likes of Hercules. Like Hercules, he sought help from a female. This woman was Ariadne. Unlike poor Zoë Nightshade she received credit for he deeds. However, she was abandoned by Theseus. He left her stranded on island even after he promised to marry her! Everything is in the open now! Its time for to think for yourselves!"

When Hera finished speaking there was an unpleasant hush that fell over the crowd. Disapproving murmurs were traded between friends and there was a large number of disappointed head shakes.

"Does anyone know the reasons why these Heroes came back to life?" Hera asked but as expected, no one replied. "No one? Then I'll have to tell you. The reasons why we gods have brought them back is because they kill, destroy, harm, damage, decimate, and annihilate. That is what they do best and that is all they can ever do. That is why they are here. They only reason why they agreed to help in the first place is because they are receiving something in return. They didn't agree to this because they care about you, the success of the mission, or the existence of the world. They trained you because we told them to, not because they wanted to. They masquerade behind fake smiles but inside they are cursing you, everyone, and everything. I know you know this and I know you can see it; even behind their lies and their heroic not feel as if I am trying to turn you away from these men. I only want for you to understand that they are not here out of the goodness of their hearts. They only want something in return."

Hera cleared her throat signifying that her spieled was over. She then turned to Hercules, "If it makes you feel better, I'm sorry that I made you kill your family. But when this is over, when you do your job, when you hold your end of the deal, I promise that you can see them again."

The rage in Hercules seemed to simmer down a tad bit. "Are you going to remain calm?" she asked him. She couldn't have taken a more degrading tone. He nodded his head. "Good," she waved her hand and the chains and gag disappeared.

Hercules stood to his feet with his face burning. He was barley able to hold his composure. It looked like he was either going to crack from embarrassment or charge in anger again.

Hera looked back to the crowd. "Right, I'm tired of this talking. Thanatos, take it from here."

Thanatos materialized from the shadows.

"I'll be waiting in Cabin Number Two. After Thanatos is finished speaking he will bring these people to my cabin: Chiron, Lupa, Achilles, Annabeth Chase, Bellerophon, Frank Zhang, Hercules, Hazel Levesque, Hylla, Jason, Jason Grace, Leonidas, Leo Valdez, Piper McLean, Odysseus, Octavian, Percy Jackson, Perseus, Rachel Dare, Reyna, Thalia Grace, and Theseus."

When Hera was out of ear-shot or what appeared to be ear-shot because the Gods hear everything, Thanatos addressed the Argonauts.

"Last time I saw you I had to leave in order to gather information….And information I did gather. However I am unable to tell you any of it. Do not worry, you will eventually learn the truth but not from me. Also, last time I saw you, you were ill prepared to fight this war….But now you stand before me as Argonauts. I don't think you should be called Argonauts though….Well…. Not until you look like them."

Thanatos snapped his fingers. The armor on the Argonauts' bodies transformed and the weapons in their hands disappeared. All of their equipment was replaced with newer, shiner and better items. Their new armor was a hybrid design of Roman and Greek. It was a painted black and was then waxed over to give it a shiny glossy look. In the center of the chest-piece was a large image of a dragon's face. This dragon's face in particular was the head that rested on the mast of the Argo II. This dragon was Festus with his ruby red eyes gleaming and his razor teeth baring. On the right shoulder of their armor was a certain insignia depending from person to person. If the Argonaut originated from Camp Jupiter, then they had an eagle and if they were from Camp Half-Blood that person had a pine-tree. The new weapons they received ranged from xiphos, falcata, gladius, spatha, makhaira, spears, javelins, and bows. They had round greek shields or rectangular roman shields. Every shield was imprinted with the face of Festus. The helmets were also a cross between Roman and Greek makeup and they where either the color gold or bronze depending on the person's heritage.

After giving the Argonauts enough time to analyze their new equipment, Thanatos spoke again. "Now you look like Argonauts. As you can see, your new gear is a mix of Roman and Greek engineering. One size fits all. Your armor is forged from Imperial Gold and Celestial Bronze. This goes for your shields and weapons as well. Some of you may be wielding a Greek Xiphos or a Roman Gladius. Your weapons are given to you according to your preference. The Gods have studied how each one of you fights and what you like to fight with. Everything on your body is personalized. Do not think we don't have faith in your mission, we do. We just can't fully help you. The Olympian laws are really fuzzy in the whole interfering area. You can thank Hephaestus and Ares for your new gifts."

Even the Heroes of Old had their armor was repainted black imprinted with the Festus emblem. Hercules's Nemean lion coat was repainted black along with Perseus's shield and the others' weapons and armor as well.

Their were a few, "Thank you's" muttered but everyone was too caught up with inspecting their new gear admiration. The Argonauts swung experimental swings, tested the weight of their blades, and fired test shots.

"Now the names Lady Hera mentioned, come with me," announced Thanatos.

* * *

><p>Chiron, Lupa, Achilles, Annabeth Chase, Bellerophon, Frank Zhang, Hercules, Hazel Levesque, Hylla, Jason, Jason Grace, Leonidas, Leo Valdez, Piper McLean, Odysseus, Octavian, Percy Jackson, Perseus, Rachel Dare, Reyna, Thalia Grace, Theseus, Hera, and Thanatos were inside Hera's cabin. They were discussing their upcoming mission. The Heroes of Old remained silent either from the embarrassment they suffered earlier or probably because they didn't talk much. Hera remained silent as she sat in a throne like char and everyone else chattered away. They were currently discussing acquisition of the keys to Death's Doors. They would need the keys to lock Thanatos's doors so they couldn't be opened again.<p>

"So it is in Rome then?" Percy asked for confirmation.

"Yes, and no. The keys to the doors are in the modern city Rome but the location of my doors are in a place where the Roman Empire once was. Vatican City-that's where you're going-isn't necessarily part of Rome or Italy either. Technically it is its own country," Thanatos informed them.

"Then what is the true location of your Doors?" Jason questioned.

"You will find out once you get the keys."

"...That are located in the obelisk in the center of St. Peter's Square," asked Annabeth perplexed. "Of all places, why a Catholic Basilica?"

"You said it yourself, the keys aren't in the Basilica, they're in the obelisk; and it's not keys plural, just A key, singular. Obelisks are Egyptian architecture, you of all people should know this Chase."

"Then why Egyptian?" Piper asked.

"Because Egypt was once a part of the Roman Empire, obviously."

"I understand the Egyptian concept but why can't you just get the keys-I mean key-yourself?" Frank asked.

"I can't because Gods can't do these sorts of things. There's a reason why we need heroes."

Everyone looked to the Heroes of Old to say something along the lines of, "The Gods are using us again," but they held their peace.

"Why can't you just tell us where your Doors are again? It would save us a lot of time?" Leo asked.

"You need to get the keys first so you will be able to lock the Doors. I have to make sure you have the key first or else I won't think you're ready to fight Gaea's armies. If you can't even fetch some keys then what good are you?"

"Speaking of Gaea's army, do you know the exact numbers they have, who's fighting for them, how many are protecting your doors? You know, the important stuff?" Hylla interrogated.

"I didn't get their exact number but it's a great many. I'm talking in the range of thousands of monsters fighting in her name but there's something else you need to know. Gaea has recruited Echidna into her ranks and together they have found a way to reproduce more monsters."

"Ew," Leo blurted.

If anyone had x-ray vision they would have seen Thanatos roll his eyes within his hood. "The way it's being done is besides the point. What I'm trying to tell you is that they have been making clones of monsters. We're talking multiple Minotaurs, Chimaeras, Hydras, and I have heard talks about an Anti-Cerberus. Not only that, Gaea has brought back more from the dead," Thanatos informed them.

"More from the dead, like who?" Hazel asked. She had a certain curiosity of the resurrected. Probably because she was once dead her self or maybe it could led them to Nico. Percy thought the same as well.

Thanatos put a hand to his chin recollecting his memories. "I overheard some monsters throwing out names but what I can confirm with my own two eyes is King Minos-"

Theseus perked his ears and raised his eyebrows.

"I hate that guy," Percy mumbled while putting his face in his hands. The thoughts of King Minos brought back bad memories and also brought back the thought of the missing Nico.

"-And Paris of Troy."

"No," Achilles said finally speaking up while at the same time he touched his heel gingerly.

"Yes," Thanatos nodded.

"I knew Paris was a coward but I didn't think he would go so low as to join the likes of Giants and monster," Achilles mused.

Thanatos shrugged not knowing what to say. "There could be more than those two but they're the only two I can guarantee. I wouldn't worry about those two because they're not really military experts but it's a sign that we need to hurry up and close my doors so we can put a stop to this."

"Is there any Giants guarding your doors as well."

"Most likely, don't know which ones, but probably."

"Did you just say, 'ones,' as in plural?" Octavian asked in disbelief.

Thanatos nodded and everyone else gave an exasperated sigh and groans of protest.

"You need to find out exact numbers and logistics my lord," Theseus commanded the death god. "It's of vast importance."

Thanatos nodded. "You don't think I know that? Trust me I will, but there is some good news. As far as I know, Gaea doesn't know that I brought you the Heroes of Old back to life which gives us the element of surprise."

No one had anything else to add which marked the nearing of the end of the meeting

"Does everyone understand the plan?" Thanatos asked making sure. "Go to Vatican City, get the key, and then wait for further instructions."

"Rachel or Octavian does this new information tell you anything about the prophecy?" Annabeth asked.

Rachel was about to open her mouth and Octavian pulled out a Beanie Baby and a knife. However, Hera cut them off by speaking for the very first time since they meeting began. "You will find the seventh along the way. That's all you will need to know."

Achilles was about to say something but Hera stopped him with a glare. "Do not search for this person. Let things play out the way they are supposed to. That's what we Gods do and you will do the same. Would anyone else like to add anything?"

Everyone shook their heads in defeat.

"I think we're done here. The Argonauts will depart on the Argo II tomorrow morning."

Everyone nodded their heads in understanding.

"Lord Thanatos, you said that Gaea's forces are large?" Chiron asked.

Thanatos nodded his head glumly, "And getting larger."

"Then I will not be accompanying the Argonauts. I will try to gather my centaur brethren so they might aid us in the fight."

"I don't know Chiron, a lot of them are fighting for Gaea," Thanatos said doubtfully.

"I will try." Chiron said determined.

"My wolves and I will not be joining either," said Lupa. "I will try to gather forces from Pan's domain to aid us."

"Unfortunately, the Hunters of Artemis won't be joining at all," Thalia said gloomily. She looked to Hercules but quickly looked away. "I will be joining the Argo II but the rest of my sisters will not be coming. A new matter has been brought to our attention."

Everyone knew that the "matter" she was talking about was Nightshade and Hercules but no one mentioned it.

"Good luck then," said Percy.

"Plans are settled, now everyone except for Frank and Jason Grace, leave and prepare for tomorrow's journey," Hera ordered them.

When exited the room, Hera got up out of her chair, and approached the remaining Frank and Jason who sat patiently in their seats. "Unlike your fellow Half-Bloods who are part of the Prophecy of Seven, you do not have special items personal to you. Percy has Riptide, Piper has Katoptris, Leo owns that utility belt, and Hazel her horse plus spatha. That is why I have gifts for you."

Hera flipped a gold coin to Jason. When he reached to catch it, instead of grabbing a coin, he held the hilt of an Imperial Gold gladius. Jason grinned as he tossed the sword in the air, flipping it, and then catching it as a javelin.

"Does it still shoot lightning-bolts?" he asked.

Hera nodded unable to contain her own grin.

"Thank you My lady."

"And for you Frank Zhang, I present this." From Hera's dress she pulled out a pale white bow recurve bow.

Frank gently took it from her hands while drooling over it's beautiful design.

"Its name is Oriens. Its latin for-"

"-Rising Sun," Frank finished for her. He was unable to contain the awe in his voice as he studied the beautiful weapon.

"It's one of many bows Apollo no longer uses. He insisted you have it. It's made of Unicorn horn and laced with Celestial Bronze and Imperial Gold. Go ahead, draw the string. The string is a made of sphinx feathers and Pegasus tail hair."

Frank drew on the thin but smooth twine. He couldn't believe how easy it was to pull it back. It took little to no effort. That wasn't half of it though. Out of thin air appeared a glowing, pale blue arrow that notched itself onto the bow string. The arrow was made of pure energy and the whole bow hummed as he continued to pull on the draw string.

"It uses the rays of the sun to create arrows. You will never need a quiver again. Just don't show Odysseus, he'll try to steal it from you."

"Thanks," the two Roman heros said with grins.

"Frank, your father also want's me to ask you if you've been reading The Art of War?"

Frank nodded, "A page a night My lady."

"Good, you'll need it. Now if you excuse me, I have other matters to attend to on Mt. Olympus. Much debating about this Gaea situation. Close your eyes." The both closed their eyes as she turned into her true form. They opened them and she was gone.

* * *

><p>The next day the Argonauts boarded the the Argo II. They loaded their weapons, war machines, war animals, and supplies. Before they boarded the ship they said their goodbyes. The Hunter hugged the females and scowled at the males. The nymphs gave every hero a kiss on the cheek and the satyrs that were too old or fat to go, played their pan flutes in farewell.<p>

"PERCY!" Tyson called.

The two walked up to each other and high-fived.

"Here," said Tyson handing Percy a watch.

"No way!" Percy said in excitement as he put the watch on his wrist and pushed a special button. He watched in wonderment as it transformed into a beautiful circular shield that had engravings of heroes fighting monster, the pictures being him and his friends.

"For protection," Tyson said with a huge grin and then crushed Percy in a bear hug. "Bye, brother."

"Wait, what? You're not coming?" Percy asked displeased.

"Not today brother. I'm going to daddy's palace. Get good Cyclops brothers to fight. Bring more weapons. Also, take Ella their for protection."

"I'll guess I'll see you around…brother," Percy said and this time he was the one who instigated the bear hug.

They separated when Mrs. O'Leary started barking at them. She licked Tyson on the face and then ran aboard Argo II.

"At least I'll have her with me," Percy said chuckling while he watched the massive dog knock fellow Argonauts over as she bounded onto the ships deck.

"And Annabeth!" Tyson grinned.

"Yeah, and Annabeth," Percy almost blushed, he didn't know why. Him and Annabeth had been dating for a while and this was Tyson he was talking, not his mom. He still couldn't prevent his cheeks going a little warm though.

Thalia was saying goodbye to her hunters. "Are you sure you don't want to go? It is what Lady Artemis wants."

Phoebe replied, "No. We will not fight alongside that monster and those who fight with him. We tolerated it but now that we have learned the truth..."

"Fine but when the world ends, I'll know who to blame." Thalia stormed off without another word and boarded the Argo II.

"Be careful child," Chiron said to Annabeth.

"Yeah, you two," she said while hugging her long-time teacher and friend.

Annabeth walked over to Percy and hand in hand they climbed aboard the Argo II. Chiron looked at them proudly. They were two of the greatest heroes he had ever trained. The Heroes he trained in the past were brutal and ruthless, this generation was much gentler and showed him that the world could be kind.

Theseus was found talking to Rachel. Over the past few days they had grown very close. When training was over they were usually found sitting in the strawberry fields reading, talking, and laughing together.

"You sure you can't come?" he asked her persuasively.

"I'm not much of a fighter," Rachel told him.

"What if we need the wisdom from the beautiful oracle?" he inquired.

Rachel giggled like a school girl and she cursed her self inwardly for doing so, "You'll have Octavian."

"Hitler Junior?" Theseus asked in disbelief with an almost whining tone.

She laughed again, "He's not that bad."

"Yeah, not as bad as me," he said softly, leaning closer toward her.

"Don't say that."

"Even after Hera told you the truth about me, you still befriend me?" Theseus asked wonderment. "You are truly a remarkable women."

"I'm just a mortal."

"An intelligent human being who can see the true nature of things and most importantly, people."

"I'm an oracle. When I look at people I see the past, present, and future. I learn from the past but I look more towards the future, people's futures." Rachel explained.

Theseus smiled and planted a kiss on her cheek. "Farewell Miss Dare," he said with a charming smile. He swung his shield over his shoulder and wore it like a back pack. He shouldered his cudgel and sheathed his sword.

"Kill some monster for me will you?" she encouraged him.

Slowly he turned away; looking back the whole entire he boarded the ship. He most tripped over himself.

Rachel giggled some more as Theseus recovered and pretend nothing had occurred. Rachel shook her head and waved him off as he finally ducked out of sight among the dozens of demigod warriors and weapons, then she sighed dreamily.

The Argonauts found themselves on the upper deck of Argo II. They were looking over the railing of the ship as they waited for take off. Leo finally got the ship in the air and the people on the ground waved goodbye. Chiron gave a smart salute and Lupa and her wolves howled their valediction. The ship climbed high into the sky, floated past Thalia's tree, past the beach, and over the Atlantic Ocean. They looked back towards the skyscrapers of New York City till they enormous structures shrunk to the size of ant hills.

"How does that saying go?" Percy asked Annabeth. "The one about Rome and roads."

"All roads lead to Rome?" she suggested.

"Yeah," Percy snapped his fingers, "that's the one."

"Why?" Annabeth inquired.

"Just wondering if we'll get there is all."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, you know, we're flying. We're not really on a road, we could get lost," he tired to conceal his grin.

"Shut up Seaweed Brain."

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	13. Get Stoned

The great warship disguised by the Mist hovered over Vatican City. It was about midday when the sun was highest in the sky. The massive city of Rome sprawled beneath the ship and it's passengers while it fully encompassed the minuscule Catholic capital of the world, Vatican City. The giant domed Basilica was a mountain that shaded the circular forum below it. The obelisk in the center of the piazza protruded out of the ground like an arrow. The Italian City that surrounded it was mostly urban sprawl with a few Ancient monuments popping out of the ground. If one were to look east they would see the Colosseum.

Percy whistled in awe.

"It's beautiful," Annabeth trailed off in amazement as she complimented the elegance of the architecture. "I've always wanted to come here since I was a kid."

"If only it was under better circumstances," Percy put in and she nodded her agreement.

The ship floated over the city as the Argonauts deliberated on their next course of action.

"Who's going then?" Octavian asked.

"Ten Argonauts will go down to the city and retrieve the key!" Achilles said from the center of the deck with the Argonauts gathered around him

"The ten I have picked will be the six heroes from the Prophecy of Seven, Chase, Underwood due to his ability to smell monsters, Theseus, and Perseus. You will take pegasi down to the ground, you will retrieve the key, signal for pick up, and comeback."

The ten chosen nodded and replied, "Aye, sir!"

"Dismissed!" Achilles said. "Hopefully the Mist will transform Theseus and Perseus's clothing into a more modern style. Actually, could someone be generous and lend them some clothing." Achilles said as he studied Perseus's and Theseus's tunics.

"I made t-shirts!" A daughter from the Aphrodite Cabin shouted ecstatically. "I want them to wear it."

The group inspected the t-shirts that the girl had made. It was dark black t-shirts with a dragon's head imprinted on the front that was similar to the Festus emblem imprinted on their armor.

Achilles rolled his eyes, "Fine, they'll wear them."

* * *

><p>The ten landed their pegasi in a dark alley a few blocks away from the Vatican. When everybody was ready to move on, they sent their pegasi back to the ship.<p>

"Black Jack, when you hear me whistle, come get us," Percy told his black pegasi.

_Okie dokie boss!_

"Right, lets go," Jason said as he lead them out of the alley out into the street.

For most of them, this was their first time on foreign soil. None of them had ever been outside of North America and this his the furthest they had been away from the Gods. Theseus and Perseus, they both had lived in Ancient Greece and ever since they were brought back to life they didn't spend much time in the cities of the modern world. The others all lived in different parts of America or Canada and had never been anywhere else. For them, walking into the Roman streets was...different. Compared to the wide busy New York streets Percy was used to; he now walked into a narrow, cobblestone roads. Percy accidentally mistook the road for another alleyway. Kiosks, art galleries, mopeds, and compact cars littered the street. The group had to overcome their minor culture shock before they proceeded.

As they walked past by pedestrians and tourist, they each prayed that their clothes, which felt disguises, would hide them from the local officials. They feared their uniformity would draw attention to them. The only mortal clothes that they had were their matching Argonaut t-shirts which all had the face of Festus on them. They wore blue jeans and the weapons that they carried were concealed in guitar cases. There wasn't much difference between what they all wore except the stray rasta cap or windbreaker. The locals didn't pay any mind to them though. They only assumed they were any other American music school touring the city of Rome like any other American school on a field trip.

The group passed by many gilato vendors, people speaking loudly and joking in Italian, and restaurants as they ventured through the streets.

"Do you think we'll find the seventh half-blood here?" Piper asked while studying each face she passed by.

"Maybe," Jason said while his eye scanned the crowd. "I just hope they speak English."

"Or maybe Nico?" Hazel suggested.

"Yeah but that also means monsters?" Frank told her. "He was captured by Gaea's forces, remember?"

"Speaking of monsters, how are we doing Grover?" Percy asked.

Grover sniffed the air and skeptically said, "So far so good. I don't smell anything...yet."

"Theres always a 'yet,' always," Leo gesticulated.

"Gaea has a great number of spies and lookouts. She knows we're here. They'll be waiting for us," Theseus assured them.

"Its cause they're attracted to my good looks," Leo tried to joke but he couldn't hide the fact of how uneasy he was. Leo forced a grin as the other rolled their eyes at him; then he chanced a quick peek over his shoulder.

* * *

><p>After several minutes of walking, the urban city buildings began to mix with classical renaissance and Ancient Roman architecture. The apartments where replaced by arches and columns, and the kiosks were substituted with domes, sautés, and fountains. The assembly was continuously pausing because Annabeth had to take a few moments to analyze everything.<p>

After another several more minutes of walking and enjoying the scenery, they entered Vatican City which then lead into St. Peter's Square. The square was in fact a circle and was surrounded by a round awning that was supported by marble columns. On the edges of the awnings were stone statues of saints who took the role of guardians that watched over the holy place and it's sacred grounds. What stood out the most though was the giant obelisk that towered exactly in the middle of the square. On either side of the obelisk were two fountains. Behind it stood St. Peter's Basilica with it's massive dome piercing the sky.

Annabeth inhaled sharply as she absorbed the beauty around her. She wanted to jump up and down like a school girl but being the daughter of Athena prevented her from doing so.

"It's just how imagined and dreamed it would be like," she whispered.

Everyone looked at her. Percy answered, "She really loves architecture."

"It's been a dream of mine ever since I was little," Annabeth informed them.

"Sorry to interrupt happy memories but...I smell monsters," Grover said.

"Well, enjoy this while you can Wise Girl because I have a feeling that things are going to get ugly quick," Percy told her plainly.

"Monsters, where?" Jason asked. "How many?"

"They're close and they're hiding. I can't know for sure," Grover informed them.

"Do you think we could find them? I can take them out with a few shots," Frank said.

"Are you kidding me?" Leo exclaimed. "Do you see how many people there are?" He gestured to the hundreds of people who were jam-packed within square.

It was summer vacation and many schools and summer camps were on field trips and they too were dressed in matching t-shirts just like the Argonauts. Not mention there were tons of families on vacation and devout Catholics there for mass. These people were taking pictures, going on tours, studying the architecture; and many were traversing in and out of the Basilica, across the quad, up and down the various stair cases, lounging on stoops, and simply getting in the way of everything.

"It doesn't matter," said Theseus. "We'll deal with them when we have too-" He was cut off when young, blond girl with grey eyes who looked about fifteen years old ran into him and knocked him over.

"Sorry," she said quickly to Theseus on the ground. She hesitated momentarily as she debated upon helping him up but dropped the idea in her urgency and ran on.

"Julia!" A boy yelled behind her. "Julia wait up!"

The boy looked about seventeen, he had long black shaggy hair and wore a United States Marine Corps t-shirt and leather jacket with a denim vest over it. The girl, named Julia, was either being chased by the boy or she was leading him somewhere. The tone in the boy's voice as he called after her could have meant both.

Theseus got to his feet in irritation but after he wiped himself off he ignored the event like nothing happened. "As I was saying, we'll deal with the monsters when they show themselves but for now we'll pay attention to that key."

"You know what doesn't make sense?" Percy implied. "Even if the monsters do stop us and take the key from us, couldn't Thanatos make a new one."

"He could," Grover answered.

"Then why couldn't he just give us one to begin with instead of sending us here?"

"Because that's against Olympian law."

"That doesn't make any sense!"

Grover opened his mouth to say respond but paused from lack of knowledge. "I don't know, it's complicated but it's just something we have to do."

"It's a lot simpler if you don't think about it Percy," Annabeth said as politely as possible.

"What ever you say," Percy sighed.

"Forget about being confused about that, how the Hades are we even going to get it? Is there like a secret compartment its in or like a lever..." Frank calculated.

"No sense in talking about it when we can do it, let's go." Perseus said leading them forward.

The group had to fight their way through the crowd. It was like walking through a human sweat-forrest with humans as the trees and the arms the branches. They managed to make it through the horde of people and reached the eighty-three foot high obelisk.

"I hope we don't have to fly up there?" Jason said looking to tip of the obelisks point.

"I don't think so," Annabeth said. "Its at the base, look for Thanatos's symbol, a butterfly."

"A butterfly?" Leo asked with a smirk on his face.

"Butterflies represents one's soul in Greek Literature. Thanatos, being the God of Death deals a lot with souls." Annabeth explained.

"It's ironic that something as harmless as a butterfly can be so closely related to death," Leo said almost laughing.

"Shut up and look," Annabeth said rolling her eyes.

Without saying anymore; the group stepped forward and began searching around the base of the obelisk. They pushed tourist out of the way who protested angrily.

"Hey, you're in our picture" A plump American lady whined as she held up digital camera to her face that was directed at her equally as plump family who were taking a photo in front of the obelisk.

Theseus responded wit dagger eyes which was enough to make the lady almost drop her camera from the sheer terror that trickled down her spine.

"Come on kids, stay away from that man," the lady said herding her children to safe distance away from him, the fat off of her arms jiggling with each step. Theseus smirked and he continued his search.

They continued their investigation a while longer till Perseus came across a weird marking etched in the stone. He recognized the wings, the abdomen, and the antenna. The butterfly!

"Found it," he called to the others.

The rest abandoned the sections they were analyzing and quickly and jumped over to Perseus. Their faces lit up when they recognized the symbol.

"Okay, now what?" Percy asked.

"Maybe we have to carve it out, someone got a knife can..." Leo called. Maybe I can get one from my tool-"

Perseus ignored Leo and pressed his thumb down directly in the center of butterfly's body. A piece of the stone plopped open like a mini-drawbridge and a tray slid out of the obelisk like a disk tray for a computer monitor. On the tray was a tiny, copper, everyday household Schlage brand key. As soon as Perseus picked up the key and placed it in his pocket, the tray slid back into the obelisk.

"It responds by the touch of demigods?" Piper suggested.

"Dead demigods who were once dead and brought back to life," Hazel corrected.

Everyone looked at her with cocked eyebrows.

"What? It is the God of Death were dealing with here! I don't think he would wan't any demigod taking the key to his doors. This key was meant was meant for his children who probably posses a death-like touch."

Before they could question the notion any further; there was a loud of explosion and the sound of crumbling rubble and cascading rock. The tourist began screaming their heads off as they ran mindless circles from panic and mass hysteria.

Percy sighed, he noticed it was becoming a habit in these past few days.

"…And queue the monsters," Grove sang nervously.

"They were waiting till we found key for them," Annabeth snarled.

"Lazy bastards!" Frank shouted to no monster in particular.

"Make sure that key is safe," Jason ordered Perseus. Jason didn't know if he could order him around like that but he needed to let Perseus know how serious this was.

"Obviously," Perseus responded.

The heroes drew their weapons. Percy uncapped riptide and activated his shield, Annabeth drew her knife, Piper pulled out Katoptris, Leo grabbed a hammer from his tool belt, and Jason flipped his coin in the air catching it as a gladius. Frank reached in his guitar case and strung his bow, Oriens. Hazel drew her spatha. Perseus pulled out his shield, his invisibility helm, and his adamantine sword. He activated his Hermes boots by clicking his heels together, took off into the air, and then went invisible with his helm. Theseus and Grover both drew their cudgels and prepared for battle.

After the crowd escaped and thinned, the Argonauts realized what enemies they were actually dealing with. The statues lined along the ledges of the awning that circled the square began bursting one by one; causing stone to scatter everywhere. The Vatican police showed up with their guns drawn but when they saw what they crowd was fleeing from, they ran too.

"The mist must be showing them something really freaky," Piper commented.

"At least the mortals are getting out of the way," said Jason as one ran past him frantically.

When the dust finally cleared from the obliterated statues; clay giants with six arms dropped down onto the ground cracking the floor they landed on. They're was about fifty of them in all and they started marching toward them.

"The Pope is going to be pissed!" Leo screamed as he looked at the cracked floor.

"The Pope is going to be pissed?" Annabeth repeated incredulously. "I AM pissed that they're destroying this place."

"Earthborn," Piper cursed.

"Were they the statues this whole time?" Percy questioned, feeling guilty that he was unaware of their presence to begin with.

"They were probably disguising themselves as them. Earhtborn are born from the Earth, they can take many shapes made of stone-like materials for short periods of time," Annabeth explained.

"Yay-son!" The Earthborn moaned as they surrounded and marched toward them.

"It doesn't matter where they're from or how they got here, kill them!" Theseus shouted.

"What's the plan?" Grover asked.

"Percy, Annabeth, Frank, Hazel, and Perseus take the right while me, Grover, Leo, Piper, and Theseus left?" Jason suggested.

"Doesn't matter, kill!" Theseus yelled.

Perseus didn't need an invitation. He was already getting busy with his sword as he whirled through three of the muddy giants. The others joined in and started battling the Earthborn. Percy rushed forward, held up his shield to protect his face from thrown rocks, rolled under one Earthborn, rose to his feet while hacking, blocked with his shield, then bashed with it, stabbed to his left, and spun in a circle with his sword arm outstretched. He was no longer surrounded by six armed giants but puddles of mud where they once stood.

Annabeth ran forward, slid on her knees between two Earthborns and cut at both their legs. The giants fell to the ground. When Annabeth slid to a stop, she got to her feet, backtracked to the downed Earthborn, and finished them off.

Leo summoned fire into his hands and used his arm like a flamethrower. He sprayed the Earthborn with his hose-arm of fire. They reeled back in pain while patting themselves to put their fires out, Leo rushed forward and with his hammer and hit a giant directly in the loincloth. It hunched over in pain as cupped it's groin in gingerly. Ella was right, Earthborns' groins where extremely sensitive. Leo smiled and then continued to beat back his aggressors.

Piper charm spoke two giants into fighting each other and then forced another two too their knees. While they were incapacitated she went in and cut them down. Grover used his pan flute to melt some of the Earthborn back into clay puddles. When the Earthborn got too close, Grover put his flute away and commenced to beat with his club.

Jason shot lighting out of the tip of his spear causing two of the mud giants to combust instantly. Jason had to take on the majority of the clay giants because they were out for blood when it came to people named Jason. Jason whirled, hacked, and called down rain storms in hopes that the water would melt the giants. It only slowed them down. When three where about to grab him, Jason stuck out his hand and sent them flying by manipulating the wind currents. The giants flew through the air perfectly aligned, allowing Frank to take them out with a single energy arrow.

Frank directed his bow to rest of the Earthborn and fired five arrows in rapid succession. They all hit their mark. Frank loved his new baby. He never had to reach into a quiver to reload and he didn't have to stress out about running out of arrows. He continued to pick off the giants one by one. He almost hit Perseus and realized friendly fire was imminent. He slung his bow over his shoulder and turned into a rhino. Like his clothes, the bow transformed with him. He charged forward aiding his friends in melee combat. Hazel held her spatha high and brought it down on a giant, slicing it in two. She whirled quickly and cut down another before it grabbed her. Meanwhile, Theseus weaved through his opponents like a dancer as he dropped them with his cudgel.

The Argonauts seemed to be handling themselves pretty well. The five days of intense training had paid off. Everything was going well until Percy was knocked off his feet as an Earthborn rammed into him and sent him flying toward one of the twin fountains on either side of the obelisk. Percy landed on his stomach. He was about to climb to his knees to retaliate but as soon as he lifted his head, something made him shut his eyes and look downward. It was a single noise that caused him to remain looking at the ground. The sound was of hissing snakes.

"Percy Jackson," a feminine voice hissed. "Long time," the familiar voice breathed.

"MEDUSA!" Percy screamed to his friends making them aware that the gorgon was present and letting them know to steer clear from his position and not look in their direction.

"All you have to do Son of Poseidon is to look up and we can spend eternity together! I can torture you forever!" The Gorgon cackled. "I can torture you for what you DID!"

Percy continued to look down, "Gaea's must be pretty desperate to recruit the likes of you."

"Fine, this is how it's going to be then, you will pay Percy Jackson," she hissed and lunged forward.

Percy closed his eyes and felt a tug in his gut. He heard the fountain explode, felt the moisture flow over his head, and the crashing sound of a wave against the shore. Percy leapt to his feet and blindly swung his sword in the direction he presumed where Medusa's voice was coming from. His blade struck a metal shield with a loud clang.

"Not me Jackson!" Perseus yelled angrily.

"Sorry," Percy apologized.

Medusa cackled, "Both Perseus's in one place! My revenge will be so sweet!"

Medusa ran at the two and they both jumped out of the way randomly while they held their eyes shut. Percy opened his eyes carefully to figure out where he was. He was back at the fountain again. Percy looked into the reflection of the water and saw the face of Medusa in it. Percy flinched at the sight. Her face somehow managed to beam even more horrible since their last encounter. In the reflection, Percy witnessed Medusa swatting at Jason who was flying circles around her as he hung upside down, turned away from her, while looking through the reflection of his shield. Even upside down and backwards, Perseus was amazingly able to counter and doge all Medusa's attacks. When she got close to landing a blow he wold disappear and reappear above her.

"Enough of this coward, fight like a hero!" Medusa screeched.

Perseus may have been able to defend himself but there was no opportunity for him to go on the offensive. There was no way he could spin around fast enough without getting turned to stone. Percy and Perseus's eyes met in each others reflections and they nodded. Percy sent a stream of water from the fountain into Medusa's face. She screamed and put her hands to her face to wipe the water from her eyes, big mistake. Perseus gently lowered himself to the ground. He raised his sword and brought it down on Medusa's neck. At the last second she uncovered her face but Perseus was prepared for that. He shut his eyes right before she lowered her hands, preventing him from turning into a statue forever. He felt his blade hit flesh and pass through spinal cord. Her body disintegrated into bronze dust and the head hit the ground with a solid thump. Without looking down Perseus stomped down on the decapitated head causing it too burst into bronze dust as well.

"Let's go help the others," Perseus said to Percy as he gestured to their fellow Argonauts.

They currently had their hands tied. Not only where they fighting large amounts of Earthborn but somehow Venti showed up while they were busy fighting Medusa. Soon their friends would be overwhelmed and most likely killed. Percy and Perseus rushed to their friends' aid. Their arrival and their swords seemed to turn the tide of the fight. Their assailants were finally but slowly backing off.

Before one of the Earthborn could escape, Leo threw his hammer at it's soft spot. Leo found it quite affective and amusing to aim for their lower region.

"I'm declaring a war on all genitals!" Leo cackled as he punched an Earthborn in the groin.

The Argonauts weren't the only ones getting in last-minute strikes. An Earthborn tackled Annabeth to the ground while she was distracted with killing two venti. Annabeth landed on her head which knocked her unconscious. She laid face down on the floor limply. The Earthborn created a boulder in his hands and prepared to drop it on her unprotected skull.

"ANNABETH!" Percy screamed as he cut down two Earthborn. He threw his body into five others and cut his way through an other ten in a frantic rage. "ANNABETH!" He screamed again. "FRANK SHOOT IT! SHOOT IT!" Percy screamed referring to the giant about to kill his girlfriend. Frank couldn't get a clear shot and he was already occupied with a couple Venti as it was.

Percy was too late. The mud giant was just about to drop the rock, but out of nowhere a blonde blur streaked through the air and collided with the giant. The giant dropped the boulder inches a way from Annabeth's face which rolled harmlessly out of the way. The blonde blur actually turned out to be a blonde girl with grey eyes. Percy rubbed his eyes in confusion. Was he seeing double Annabeth? No, this one was a few years younger.

"JULIA, WHAT THE HELL!" A shaggy haired boy with a leather jacket and denim vest screamed. He grabbed the girl by the shoulder.

"I'm just trying to help these people!"

"But you don't even know them!"

"SO?" Julia fired back defiantly. "I'm sure they would've helped us!"

"Shit!" The boy yelped as the Earthborn that Julia just tackled began to get up. The boy pulled out a viscous looking World War II trench knife from his jacket. The blade was a good seven and a half inches long with a gold and bronze tint, the hilt of the knife had a brass-knuckles or knuckle-duster meant to protect the knuckles of the wielder or meant for punching enemies, and at the bottom of the hilt was a spiked pommel probably used for bashing and hammering.

The boy held the knife with a reverse grip and stabbed down on the giants face causing it to instantly turn to brown goo. The boy wheeled around just in time to stop an Earthborn from picking him up. The boy slashed it's throat and then stabbed the knife downward into another giants chest. He flipped the knife back around into normal grip and stabbed upward into another Earthborn's stomach. He kicked down behind an Earthborn's kneecap causing it to fall. The boy used the brass knuckles to punch it's face in and then brought the pommel down it's temple for the killing blow.

Percy stopped in his tracks and looked upon the scene in awe. This kid knew how to fight, there was no doubt about that. Percy didn't know where he learned to fight like that our how his knife seemed to harm, no not harm, KILL the Earthborn. He also wondered how these two kids could see through the mist and identify the mud giants. Finally obviousness struck him in the face. These kids weren't your regular tourist or mortals, they were demigods! A scream brought him away from his thoughts and back to reality. Percy cursed his ADHD.

"TYLER!" The Annabeth look-a-like screamed. She was picked up by one of the Venti and was carried off into the air. "TYLER!" She screamed again.

"JULIA!" The boy wielding the trench knife screamed back. "JULIA! DON'T WORRY, I'LL GET YOU!" The boy threw his knife like a throwing knife at the Venti. He missed and the knife hit the ground with a depressing clang. The boy ran forward and picked it up.

"TYLER, HELP ME!"

A storm spirit swooped to grab the Tyler kid but Percy jumped in and stabbed with Riptide before the wind spirt could grab him. Another Venti tried to snatch Annabeth on the ground but Percy stopped that one as well. Tyler ignored the entire event and ran off in the direction of the retreating Venti and looking up at the sky the entire time, tracking a single Venti. It was the one who kidnapped his friend. Tyler cut through two Earthborn with ease and dodged the next one. Nothing was going to stop or slow him down. Everything in his path would be destroyed. Everything except Theseus. Theseus stuck out his arm and close-lined the shaggy haired boy causing him to land on his back. Theseus grabbed the boys knife and pinned his arms to the ground before he could get up.

"GET OFF OF ME! I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL YOU!" The boy screamed at Theseus and then spit in his eyes.

"Listen to me!" Theseus ordered. Tyler refused to listen. "HEAR ME BOY! If you go after her now, you will surely be killed! Then you wouldn't be able to rescue her and that means you and her both die! What good will that do? Let her go... for now."

Tyler ignored him. He looked straight into Theseus's eye with his cold dark ones. Only raged filled his pupils. "I'LL KILL YOU TOO IF HAVE TO! I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!"

The Venti and the Earthborn were making their full retreat but they wouldn't be gone for long. They would come back with reinforcements. This was the group's opportunity to escape.

"Percy, we need to get out of here, NOW!" Jason screamed.

Percy didn't hesitate. He put his fingers into his mouth and whistled his best New York cab whistle. They waited a few moments and then the silhouette of ten pegasi appeared in the sky. They swooped down and landed in front of them. Percy picked up Annabeth and gently placed her on Blackjack and then climbed on after.

_Oh snap boss! I don't know about this, _Black Jack protested in response to the extra weight_._

Percy ignored him as he waited for everyone got onto their Pegasi and prepared to take off.

_You're luck she's pretty, boss._

"Got the key?" Jason asked Perseus, making sure.

Perseus nodded as he mounted his pegasi.

"JULIA!" screamed the shaggy haired boy again. He tried shoving Theseus off one last time but Theseus was too strong. The boy slammed his head backward into the ground in frustration. He began to sob. His best friend was kidnapped and he couldn't do anything about it. "JULIA...I'll find you...I promise."

"What about him?" Hazel asked gesturing to the crying boy under Theseus.

"Bring him," Percy said.

"NO! I WON'T LET YOU TAKE ME!" Tyler stopped crying and screamed. He began to fight with all his might, searching for freedom. Theseus knocked him out with a swift punch, picked him up, and placed him onto his pegasi.

"Okay, let's get out of here, please, NOW, thank you!" Grover yelled in distress.

"Don't worry, I always hated church," said Leo.

"You don't need to tell me twice," Percy agreed and they took off into the clouds returning to the Argo II.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	14. Comparisons

Tyler bolted upright with a howl. He was covered in cold sweat and his head was throbbing. Tyler winced as he touched the spot where Theseus punched him in the face. Tyler cursed and swore that he was going to kill him. He then took several moments recovering from the initial pain and shook his head trying to clear the blurry vision. Although his head still throbbed he took time to inspect his surroundings. He was in a windowless room with a single light that shined above him with only one door. Was he in some sort of jail?

Tyler sat with his face in his palms as he nursed his head. His mind was flooded with chaotic thoughts that he couldn't place together and sort out. The events that happened at the Vatican slammed into him. The rage flowed through his veins again as he recalled the events that happened...a couple hours ago, a day ago, a week ago? Time didn't matter, all he knew was that was that his best friend, his only friend, was taken away from him.

Why did she have to do that? Why did she always involve herself with other people? Flashbacks came to him as he sat in silence and solitude.

_"Why did you have to do that?" Tyler asked infuriated._

_"The kid needed some money," Julia told him._

_"But we barley have enough for ourselves!"_

_"Trust me, he needs it more than we do!"_

_"What? We need that money! We have been chased all across France by those...those THINGS for the past five months. The last thing we need is for you to waste all our money on a random homeless kids!"_

_"Sorry if I just want to help people," Julia said sarcastically._

_"We can barley help OURSELVES!"_

_"Dude, you get pissed way too easily!"_

_Tyler turned away from her and shook his head in irritation._

_"Tyler, it was only a euro," Julia tried._

_"Whatever, let's just get out of here."_

At the time he was mad at her for helping people but now he laughed at himself for being such an ass. The kid only needed a little money. Tyler smacked himself in the face. He had always wondered why Julia felt sympathy for others, alway interfered with others affairs, or gave away something she didn't need.

"IT'S BECAUSE SHE'S BETTER THAN YOU!" His mind screamed at him and his mind was right.

Why was he always so selfish? Julia was the generous one and Tyler was always the iron fist. He guessed that their two opposite personalities made them the perfect team. His rage and fury allowed them to survive harsh environments and Julia's calmness and rationality enabled them to get through stressful situations. Together, they saved each others lives' more than they could count. Tyler recalled a time where Julia was almost kidnapped to be forced into a life of prostitution, part of a French human trafficking organization, but he saved her; not without killing the culprits first. Tyler was so quick to kill and he did it so easily, he even liked it. The thought made him shiver. Was he evil? That was another flaw that he found in himself. He was only seventeen and he had killed twenty-one people already. The body count could have been higher due to the fact the he didn't remember anything before age fifteen. How come he never felt any guilt or remorse? Why? Tyler conclusion that he was in fact evil.

Tyler remembered another time with Julia when he was almost arrested by the English Police. Tyler reached for his hidden trench knife to stab the officer but Julia showed up just in time and saved the officer's life and probably Tyler's as well. She created a sob story that the officer believed and he let them go free. Julia was able to resolve the situation without shedding any blood while Tyler would have been glad to break a few bones and stab a few hearts.

Why did Julia put up with him? He was a monster. No, he was worse than a monster.

Tyler thought back to when Julia and him first met.

_He sprinted through the streets of Madrid as the Spanish cops chased after him. He was almost grabbed by one who jumped in front of him. Tyler instinctually slid baseball style between the cops legs. Tyler got to his feet and continued to run. Another tried to grab at his arm but Tyler whipped out his trench knife and punched him in the face with brass knuckles._

_All this over a measly apple._

_Tyler knew they would catch up to him eventually. He couldn't outrun them all day and already it felt as if his lungs were going to burst; but he couldn't stop because if he did he was done for. He had assaulted an officer and resisted arrest, two severe crimes. If he had just put the apple back instead running, he could've gotten away free. Instead he decided to run and injure police men in the process. He would surely spend his life in jail or they would send him to America and lock him up in Guantanamo Bay to never be heard from again. All over an apple and his ability to not think clearly._

_After running for another straight ten minutes Tyler stopped and hunched on his knees from exhaustion. He couldn't run anymore but he still heard the shouts of the police in the distance. Soon they would be all over him and they would probably beat him for hitting one of their own._

_"Shit, I give up!"_

_"Pst," a feminine voice whispered to him._

_"Huh," Tyler looked around for where it came from._

_"Down here!"_

_Tyler looked left to an alleyway next to him. He saw a blonde girl crouching under a trash bag that she was lifting over head._

_"Over here dummy!"_

_"You speak English?"_

_The girl rolled her eyes. "Do you want to go to jail?"_

_Tyler shook his head._

_"Then get down here!"_

_Tyler didn't need to be told again. He ducked into the alleyway and joined the blonde girl underneath the trash bag. She piled a few more bags on top of them and they sat quietly, waiting. A few seconds later the sound of people running and yelling in Spanish passed by. They waited till the sounds faded into the distance and a few more minutes after that. Finally when they deemed that the coast was clear, they heaved the mountain of trash bags off of them and stood up coughing from the pungent smell of garbage._

_"Thanks!" Tyler coughed._

_"No problem," the girl told him._

_"So, what crime did you commit to make yourself hide under trash?" Tyler asked her curiously._

_"Probably the same thing you did that made you so popular with the 5-0."_

_Tyler guessed, "Did you steal something?"_

_The girl reached inside her shirt and pulled out a necklace with crucifix charm on it._

_"Ah, so you're a believer. Isn't there something in the Bible that says you shouldn't steal?"_

_The girl ignored the remark. "What did you take?"_

_Tyler pulled the apple out of his jacket pocket and took a bite out of it._

_"Yeah, this is so delicious. I'm beyond starving!"_

_"All that commotion for just one apple? Why not two or hundred while you're at it?" She said sarcastically._

_"You try living on the streets for a month without proper meals." Tyler suggested._

_"I already am," the girl told him matter-of-factly._

_"Is that so?"Tyler said while looking her over._

_She looked about twelve years old, her face was covered in dirt from weeks of sleeping outside, her blonde hair was a birds nest, and her clothes were ripped and torn. Her appearance was of a girl broken and beaten but her eyes said otherwise, piercing grey orbs that had a glint of strength and determination._

_Tyler took another bite from his apple and started to walk off._

_"Thanks kid," he said while raising his free hand in farewell._

_"Wait, you didn't even tell me your name!" the girl called after him._

_"Tyler,"_

_he said as he stopped and looked over his shoulder and continued to walk on._

_"You're not even going to ask me my mine?"_

_Tyler stopped again, annoyed now, "Kid, does it really matter?"_

_"Mines Julia," Julia told him._

_"Whatever," he said waving her off while walking away again._

_"Where you from?"_

_Tyler turned around again, almost furious. "You're just full of questions aren't you? Well, I got one for you JULIA! Why won't you mind your god damn business?"_

_"I asked my question first, so you answer first."_

_Tyler took another bite from the apple and thought about it. She had him stumped. "None of your business."_

_"That answer sucked, try again."_

_Tyler sighed. "I don't remember," he said softly._

_"What, I didn't hear you."_

_"I don't remember!" Tyler said pronouncing every syllable._

_"How do you not remember?"_

_"One day I wake up. I don't know where I am or who I am. I'm in some random place with random faces. I don't even remember my own last name or where I'm from. I just know that I'm Tyler, that's it. I do know I like living and I want to live on, so that one day I find out who the hell I am! Again, thanks for saving my ass back there but right now you're interfering with my plan…which is to survive."_

_"Maybe we can help each other?" Julia suggested._

_"You've already done enough and I again thank you, but I don't need your help any more. Also, no offense kid, you're like...eleven years old."_

_"I'm twelve thank you very much!"_

_"Whatever! Besides you'll slow me down."_

_"It's not like you're doing that to yourself already."_

_"I can take care of myself just fine without you nosing in!"_

_"Sure," Julia said sarcastically._

_"You know what," Tyler said raising his fist._

_Julia scoffed. "What, you're going to hit a defenseless twelve year old girl. Go for it buddy!"_

_Tyler grinned as he put his fist down. "You got spunk kid, I'll give you that."_

_Julia spoke softly now, "I know how you feel. I lost my memory too."_

_"You're making things up so that I can just take you along."_

_"For one, you wouldn't be taking me along, we would be accompanying each other. Second, I don't make things up. I woke up last month too, in some place I've never been. Actually, I can't say if I've been there or not because I don't remember. I can only remember one thing, my name, Julia and my age. I'm in the same boat as you buddy!"_

_Tyler looked at her curiously. It didn't seem like she was lying. He said nothing._

_"Listen, we would make a great team. You have the brawn and I have the brain. I do the talking and you do the hitting. I also do the stealing too because lets face it...you suck at it."_

_"Then why were hiding under trash?"_

_"They weren't after me because I stole the Cross, it was because I ran away from the Catholic Orphanage a month ago. That's where I woke up. I assumed it was worse than living on the streets and I assumed correctly. Besides, they were idiots. I took my chances out here. I heard the cops and thought they were after me, so I hid. Then I saw you and well...I like helping people in need."_

_"But you don't like helping yourself," Tyler nodded. "Hey," he also protested. "I'm not in need."_

_"Then why did you hide next me?"_

_Tyler ignored the remark and asked a different question._

_"How come you're not scared of me? I punched two cops and I have this," Tyler said while dangling his savage looking trench knife playfully. "Most people would've have let me rot in jail."_

_"I don't know, I just saw something in you. Besides, you're just the person I need, protection. You're also a kid."_

_"Kids can be dangerous too."_

_"I rather trust a kid than a grown-up."_

_Tyler couldn't argue with her logic, she had a point._

_"What's the deal with the Cross?" He asked._

_"I think its pretty and it stands for something bigger than myself. I'm no Jesus-Freak or bigot but I like to think there someone out there...looking over us. I need hope, especially in my situation."_

_Tyler studied her one more time. "Fine, you can come with me bust just don't talk to me about that Jesus stuff. Him and I aren't on the best of terms with each other at the moment."_

_"Deal?" Julia said sticking out her hand._

_Tyler stuck out his hand hesitantly but then he smacked his palm on hers._

_"Deal!"_

Tyler was fifteen then and Julia was twelve and half. Now they're seventeen and fifteen. From that point and on, Tyler and Julia were two peas in a pod. For the past two years they roamed Europe, taking in the sights, stealing food, stealing money, getting into trouble, wreaking chaos, running from cops, and more running; they seemed to run a lot. One thing that Tyler did enjoy, something he would never admit to Julia, was visiting the museums and monuments. Julia always dragged him to those places because she had an odd fascination with architecture and old art. Tyler always complained but deep down inside, he liked it. He also liked being her friend, more than her friend, her big brother. He loved her like a sister. They were Bonnie and Clyde, just the two of them against the world. It was like they were blood relatives and relatives don't leave each other to die. He had to save her, he promised for God sake! He knew he was going to save her, there was no doubt it.

Tyler climbed to his feet, determined now and the rage was flowing in his blood again. He reached in his coat pocket to grab something but he came out empty. He forgot they took his knife. Tyler shrugged, he would get to kill them with his bare hands now and that seemed more satisfying. He walked to the door and inspected it by tapping on it a few times. It didn't seem that strong. He walked all the way to the end of the room and prepared to ram into the door. He had no idea what was on the other side or what he was going to do once he got the door open, but at that moment his main objective was killing that door.

Tyler screamed as he charged forward, but right before he made contact, the door swung open.

He collided violently into a solid object which made him fall backward. He thought he had run into wall but when he got to his feet and looked at what he had crashed into, his jaw dropped. It was a big muscular man that stood at almost seven feet. He wore a lion helmet with an armor set to go with it.

The man walked through the door and had to duck under the sill because he wouldn't fit otherwise. He wasn't a man, he was a giant.

"Going somewhere," the giant boomed.

* * *

><p>Julia screamed for Tyler till she couldn't scream anymore. She finally stopped after about an hour of flying. The thing that carried her was this horsehuman/thingy but seemed to be made of wind. She was furious with her captor. It ruined her perfect day at the Vatican. That had always been a dream of Julia's, going to the Vatican, ever since she woke up two years ago and came across a brochure of it in Spanish. She wanted to kill the thing carrying her, badly! She scared herself on how much she was thinking like Tyler.

She had no idea what to do in her situation. She had a switch blade in her pocket that she would gladly use but could she even stab wind? Even if she did get free, she would fall to her death. They were flying at least three thousand feet in the air. If the thing really wanted to kill her, it would have done so already. She decided to let things play out. The thing was probably going to take her to the ground sooner or later. Would it? And if it did, how long would that be? Hours, days, weeks?

The 'Thing,' Julia had deemed it, didn't seem like it had any fruit snacks to give her and it didn't look as if they were going to stop for water. If she didn't get food or water she would obviously die and she didn't want to die. Her calmness had faded away and she began to panic again. She reached inside her pocket and grabbed the switch blade. She flicked the blade open and stabbed down on the wind horse. The horse screeched and started to buck. Apparently, you can stab wind. Julia brought the blade out and stabbed one more time, then again, and again. Julia was pretty proud of herself until the point at which the Thing had her released causing her to fall to her death.

The wind rushed in her ears so fast she couldn't even hear herself scream and she was screaming loudly. Time around her seemed to slow down as she. Her life flashed before her eyes, well as much of it as she could remember. Her life started two years ago when she woke up in a random hotel in Madrid, Spain. From there she found Tyler and together they roamed Europe. Images of museums, police chases, and her and Tyler laughing flashed before her eyes. Suddenly a pain entered in her brain. It was like someone stuck a needle through her eye.

The images she saw changed and it was the time before she met Tyler. She didn't know for sure but she felt it in her gut.

She saw a women with long blonde-hair and grey eyes. She had a serious face with a stern expression. It reminded Julia of herself when she looked in the mirror. The women smiled and warmth filled Julia's body. It was her mother, it had to be! The scene faded to one where Julia was now wielding a sword and was fighting off a pack of dogs who appeared to be rabid. That scene transitioned to one where she was crying face down in her bed. Then the flashes became jumbled and unorganized. She was in a beautiful ancient city, then men were yelling at her, she saw angry expressions on faces she didn't recognize, she felt anger in return. There was blinding light and...then nothingness. Was she dead?

Julia's eyes opened with a start and then she splashed into a pool of water. She landed in the ocean and after a few minutes of thrashing around in the water she managed to locate the direction of shore and swam to it. It didn't make sense, even though she landed in water, she should've have died from that height. Jumping into water from extreme heights is like landing on concrete but yet she survived.

On the shore, Julia walked out of the waves and onto the beach. She fell face first into the sand and laid there in fatigue. Sleep sounded wonderful to her.

"Get up Julia," a women told her.

"No," Julia groaned.

"Do you want to die, is that what you want? If you're going to lay here you might as well spare me the time and die already. You can leave this world behind and you will be free. You'll be free of a life running and stealing."

"Leave me alone."

"You'll also leave behind what's his name...Tyler. Oh, yes, Tyler. You can never see Tyler again you will lose the chance of remembering your true past."

Julia sighed in defeat, the lady somehow convinced her.

"You suck," Julia said pushing herself to her feet. She brushed the sand off her wet clothes and then looked at the women speaking to her.

The women was seriously beautiful in the white dress she wore and the crown on her head. She emitted an aura of power and authority.

"Who are you? How do you know my name? Where am I? How do you know Tyler?" Julia demanded in rapid succession.

"I am Hera, the Queen of Olympus. As for my knowledge...I know everything about you. I've been watching you and guiding you for the last two years."

"Okay...I'm either the following: drunk at a pub with Tyler, high, or dreaming. Since I don't do A or B, I'm dreaming."

"You are not dreaming child."

"That's what all my dreams tell me. That must also explain the werewolves that have been chasing us the last 'five months', the thing at the Vatican, and the wind things, the six armed monsters, and me just now; I'm not dead! It's all just a dream!"

"Again, it's not a dream. How do you think you and Tyler found each other? How do you think you survived the fall? Me."

"Then I'm crazy or your crazy. Since I would never degrade myself, I declare you Queen Hera of the Crazy."

"What would make you say that young one?"

"Because Hera is a goddess in Greek MYTHOLOGY. I think the word 'mythology' justifies my case."

Hera smiled. "You have always been a perceptive one. However 'Greek Mythology,' as you put it, is in fact real."

"No because there are no gods, only one, the GOD! G-O-D!"

Hera laughed, "We can put that misnomer to rest right here. Explaining everything to you will take too long so I'll give you the short version. Your familiar with Greek mythology, yes? You got some books on it England, correct? Even though you have dyslexia you can read very well."

Hera took no time to pause for Julia.

"I apologize in advance if what I tell you confuses you further. It most likely will. The Gods are alive and well, they follow western civilization to western civilization. Whatever Western nation is the most powerful. Right now they reside in America, even though the country grows weaker and weaker everyday. However, there is a new threat that Olympus faces and that this threat is Gaea and her children. Not the Titans but her Giant sons. They plan to destroy Mt. Olympus in order to destroy the Gods once in for all and end all civilization as we know it. Gaea is in control of Death's Doors and is bringing people back to life. The Argo was rebuilt and an army of demigods, mortals, and creatures alike plan to take the doors back. However, they are greatly outnumbered and need more forces to aid them. That's where I need you."

"Okay, let's say you're not crazy. Why do you need me? I don't even see how I would be any help. I don't fight, Tyler does that, and he's currently MIA."

"You are a demigod and a Hero. We Gods need you as much as we hate to admit it."

"A demigod?" Julia asked in disbelief. "Who's my parent then?"

"Athena," Hera told her.

Julia didn't say anything. She was overwhelmed by all this information and she didn't even believe most of what she heard. However, there was a small chance this lady was telling the truth.

"I need you, Julia, daughter of Athena, to walk south and rally more forces to aid the New Argonauts."

"How would I even know where to look? What to do these 'forces' even look like?"

"Trust me and trust yourself. Then you will know. I believe in you Julia Myers."

Julia Myers shivered as she finally hear he last name for the first time.

"Travel with speed Julia," Hera told her.

"Okay," Julia said unsure. She still didn't know wether to believe any of this.

"One more thing," Hera said.

Hera grabbed Julia's switch blade and yanked the crucifix off her neck.

"Hey," Julia protested.

Hera closed her eyes and while she held the two objects together, there was a flash of light, and the switch blade and Cross were no longer in her hands. Instead she held a sword, a Greek Makhaira to be correct.

"You may have more use with this than that switch blade and that...other thing." Hera said putting the weapon in Julia's hands.

"Hey, you can't push your beliefs on me and expect me to take it! I believe in God! Not even forming swords out of thin air is going to make me believe in myths and magic.

Julia was lying to her self though. Deep down she knew this lady, this Goddess, was telling the truth.

"Travel south into the mountains, find the pale boy, and rally the troops!" Hera commanded her. "Now go forth and conquer." Hera closed Julia's eyes and then turned into her true form and disappeared.

Julia reopened her eyes to find the goddess no longer standing there. She was alone on a beach with a sword in her hand. Julia sighed and began to walk south. Mountains? Pale boy? Troops?

"I DON'T EVEN KNOW HOW TO USE THIS THING!" Julia screamed referring to the sword in her hands to no one in particular. Hopefully Hera heard.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	15. Strange Notions

Tyler threw a punch at the giant man's stomach. His fist merely bounced off the firm abdomen.

"Let's go," the giant man sighed while he picked Tyler up and flung him over his shoulder.

"Hey put me down or else!"

"Or else what?"

"I'LL KILL YOU!"

"Can you not scream in my ear please?"

They exited the room and walked down the hall; all the while Tyler punched, kicked, and bit. His antics were in vain because his captor was invulnerable to conventional attacks. Tyler threw an elbow into the man's head but regretted it instantly as the shock from his funny bone climbed up his arm. His rage had made him forget that the giant man was wearing a lion helmet.

"Where are you taking me?"

The man ignored him as he walked through the hall which opened up into an enormous room. The room was filled with kids Tyler's age who were dressed in dragon armor. The kids were taking naps in hammocks, sharpening swords, wrestling one another, sparring with each other, sword fighting, dueling, playing cards, using crates as poker tables, telling jokes, and listening to blaring hip-hop music. It didn't stop there though. There was teens with goat legs, there was a giant dog, and a random elephant. The room the walls of the room were lined with cannons. There were weapons strewn all over the place ranging from swords, to spears, to clubs, and much more pointy things. After recovering from the surprise, Tyler continued to kick and scream. The talking ceased and all eyes turned to the screaming Tyler and giant man.

"WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT?" Tyler screamed at them. "I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!"

They studied him for a few seconds and then went back to what ever they were doing. The big man adjusted Tyler on his shoulder and continued to walk.

"DID YOU HEAR ME? I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!"

They exited the big room and entered another one just as large. This one was full of tables and benches instead of weapons and teenage warriors. In the corner of this room was a kitchen that you would most likely find in a school cafeteria. Tyler concluded that they were in a cafeteria. There was a table in the center of the room with a bunch of people sitting around it. Tyler recognized the people he saw at the Vatican, a few new faces, and a hooded man. Tyler met eyes with the young man who held him down, prevented him from rescuing Julia, and the one who punched him.

"YOU!" Tyler screamed as he pointed from atop the giant man's shoulder. "YOU DIE FIRST!"

"Hercules, would you seat our guest please?" the hooded man asked.

Hercules dropped Tyler to the ground gently. Tyler scrambled to his feet and tried to run straight for the one who had punched him. Before he could though, Hercules grabbed the collar of his jacket, and pulled him back.

"NO! ARG! UH!"

Hercules led Tyler to an empty seat at the table and planted him in it.

"Let go of me!" Tyler yelled as he brushed Hercules hands of his shoulders.

The hooded man addressed him. "If you don't sit still and cooperate I'll have my two friends over there put an arrow into your eye sockets before you can blink." The hooded man said cooly and politely as he pointed too the two men in the corner who were armed with bows.

Tyler thought about grabbing a butter knife from the table in front of him but he thought the wiser.

"Fine."

"Good," the hooded man said. "What is your name son?"

Tyler thought to make up a lie or not say anything at all, but was the point? They would all be dead soon anyway.

"Tyler."

"Where are you from Tyler?" the hooded man asked.

"Don't remember."

"What do you mean 'you don't remember'?" a weasel of a boy demanded.

"Hera," a blonde boy with a scar above his lip answered for him.

"Who?" Tyler asked.

"Just tell us what you know," the hooded man said politely.

"I can't remember anything before two years ago. I woke up in Spain. Met my best friend and from there we roamed Europe. Five months ago we ran into some wolf-thins in France. They chased us all around that country." Tyler explained annoyed.

"Lycanthrope," said a girl with electric blue eyes and black spiky hair.

"Huh? I just know that they're hard to kill. We thought if we went to Italy we would be safer. My friend is really into architecture and stuff. She's also Catholic, so it was only right of us to go to the Vatican."

"You say here name is Julia?" the hooded man asked.

"Yes," Tyler said irritated. "Can we hurry this up? She is out there and I need to save her! Either help me or get out of my way!"

"You say you can't remember anything before two years ago? Two, are you sure two?"

"Do you have crap in your ears? That's what I said."

A few eyebrows raised at his response. Not because of the obscenity or the manner of answer but the content of it.

"Usually it's a couple months or couple days that they can't remember anything," Annabeth put in.

"That is most peculiar," nodded the hooded man.

"Yeah, losing your memory usually is!" Tyler snarled sarcastically. "I've had enough of this. What do you want from me?"

"The question, actually, is what do you want from us Tyler?" the hooded man asked.

"Well, where do I begin. I'll start off by saying I want all of your heads on a platter!" Tyler shouted as he stood to his feet." The two men with their bows notched arrows onto their bow strings. The hooded man waved them off.

"If I can't have that, I want you to release me so I can save my friend," Tyler finished.

"I'm I afraid we can't do that," the hooded man told him.

"Why not? If you guys wanted me dead, you would have killed me already. I repeat, what do you want from me?"

"Do you know about Greek Mythology, Tyler?" the hooded man asked.

"What does this have to do with anything?"

"It's a simple question, answer it."

Tyler slowly sat back down in his seat. "Sure..."

"Then you know about the Greek Gods?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, Tyler, I am one."

Tyler began to laugh uncontrollably and looked at the faces around him. "You guys are crazy."

The hooded man ignored the remark. "I am the God of Death, Thanatos."

Upon hearing the name 'Thanatos', Tyler's brain exploded. He closed his eyes to fight back the pain and grabbed his head in agony. He screamed toward the sky and his mind was bombarded with images. He saw Gods and great battles. He knew of the two demigod camps, Jupiter and Half-blood, he knew about monster, he knew of the Titans, the Giants, the Argonauts, and of Gaea. He was sure he had just been returned all of his memories, but they were jumbled and he didn't how to piece it together. He didn't know what to do with it all.

_"Do you want to save Julia," a women's voice asked in his head._

_"Yes!"_

_"Then listen to the Argonauts. Help the Argonauts."_

_"Who are you?"_

_"Follow every single one of their instructions and you will find your friend. Go with them to the Atlas Mountains and close Death's Doors."_

_"Why me?"_

_"Because you are the Son of Eris. Do you understand?"_

_Tyler didn't respond. The pain in his head increased._

_"Kind of! Just don't do that again!"_

_"I will provide the information you need to complete your quest. Your full memories will come to you eventually. The Argonauts need your help and you need theirs."_

_"Who are you?"_

_"Just your fairy GOD mother, child, just a guardian."_

Tyler opened his eyes to find that he was leaning face down on the table. He raised his head slowly off the wooden surface. He looked at the faces that surrounded him. They all wore shocked and confused expressions; induced from his sudden outburst. He ignored the looks, raised his finger, and pointed at Thanatos.

"Thanatos, God of Death," he boomed. He directed his finger from face to face as he named each person. Tyler was in a trance.

"Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, Grover Underwood, Clarisse La Rue, Leo Valdez, Piper McLean, Jason Grace, Thalia Grace, Hazel Levesque, Frank Zhang, Octavian, Reyna, Queen Hylla, Hercules, Theseus, Perseus, Jason, Achilles, Bellerophon, Leonidas, and Odysseus!"

There were gasps around the table.

"I am Tyler Horace, Son of Eris! Look upon the face of Chaos!" If Tyler wasn't in his trance, he would've shivered finally knowing his last name.

"How?" Piper asked.

Tyler hunched forward back on to the table. The spell was broken. He gripped his head in pain. "I...don't...I don't know. I'm just seeing things in my head. I know of the Gods, I know about Titans, I know about monsters, I know about Giants, and I know about Heroes." Tyler groaned. "What I don't know is what I have to do with any of this. Ah!"

"It's Hera, she's giving him some memories back," answered Annabeth.

"Why would she take them?" Tyler groaned.

"Its part of her plan or something, we're not exactly sure," Annabeth told him. "She might be giving you back some memories so you will be able to complete the task she wants you to do."

"That doesn't explain how he knows all of us, by name for that matter," said Thalia. "Have any of you ever seen him before?"

Everybody shook their heads.

"No, it's not his memories, but you are half right Annabeth." said Thanatos. "Hera is merely feeding him the correct information he needs to do whatever he must do."

"And what would that be?" Tyler grimaced as he gripped his skull between his hands. More images and flashes were coming to him. The pain was immense.

"To save a life, we are not exactly sure. The prophecy says that a child of Eris is the seventh demigod and they'll be wielding a knife," said Octavian. "Specifically, a Child of Eris.

"The Prophecy of Seven?" Tyler asked. The Prophecy of Seven was recited in his head and more information followed it. The pain increased.

Annabeth nodded, "You're the seventh."

"You fit the criteria. When we found you were using a knife... and you aren't exactly the epitome of calmness." Jason Grace told him. "No offense."

"None taken. The last person I killed said the same thing," Tyler managed to say. "Ugh! Why does this hurt so much?"

"Jason and I gained back our memory slowly," Percy said. "You're probably just taking on too much at one time."

"Ah, okay!" Tyler nodded. "Speaking of my knife, where is it?"

Clarisse pulled out the WWII Trench Knife from underneath the table. She looked to Thanatos hesitantly but Thanatos nodded the go-ahead to her. She slid the trench knife across the table to Tyler.

"That's a beautiful piece you carry," commented Clarisse. "I took the liberty of inspecting it earlier. That there is a M1918 Trench Knife. Seven and a half inch long blade, brass-knuckle hilt guard, and a skull crusher pommel for cracking a few heads. The odd thing about it though it's constructed of Celestial Bronze, Imperial Gold, Stygian Iron, silver, Adamantine, and steel. That thing can kill anything." Clarisse said in awe.

"I find it creepy how you discovered all that out after licking it," Leo remarked. "I swear, I saw her licking it earlier."

Thalia's ears perked. "All those materials in one weapon, that explains why you could kill the Earthborn and last so long against the Lycanthrope. I thought it was just a regular mortal knife."

Memories of Backbiter and Kronos's Scythe, came back to Percy. The thought of the two weapons made him shiver. Those two weapons were only made of Celestial Bronze and steel. Compared Tyler's knife, they were nothing. Tyler knife was composed of bronze, steel, and also had Imperial Gold, Stygian Iron, and Adamantine. There was no telling what the blade could to it's victims.

"Why would one make a weapon such as that, one that can kill monsters and mortals alike? It's barbaric," Reyna said disgusted.

"It's made that way too make sure who ever I kill stays killed," Tyler said putting the knife back into the hidden sheath of his jacket.

"Is anyone even allowed to make a weapon like that?" asked Piper.

"No," said Hazel. "A weapon like that can sever one's soul."

"How would you know something like that?" Frank asked her.

"I'm a daughter of Pluto. I know my precious metals and their properties. Also, I think I would know a thing or two about souls."

"It's a weapon that can kill Titans and Giants alike," Odysseus stated.

"...Or Gods," the original Jason added hungrily.

"Easy," Thanatos warned him.

"All I know is that I want one," said Clarisse.

"Me too," all the Heroes of Old agreed. They were almost drooling.

"Don't even bother asking where I got it. It was on me when I woke up and If catch any of you trying to take it, I'll take your freaking head." Tyler told them.

"Forget all this talk about the knife," Thanatos said a little irritated. "We brought you here because we need to know if you will join us Tyler Horace?"

"Yes, but only on one condition."

"And what would that be?" Achilles sighed.

"You help me find Julia."

If his hood was off, they would have seen Thanatos smile one of his rare smiles.

"You're in luck because I believe I know where the Venti have taken her."

"Where?" Tyler said with his ears perked now.

Thanatos addressed everyone. "My Doors are in the Atlas Mountains."

"That's in Africa not Rome," Percy said.

"You're forgetting that the Roman Empire stretched as far as the Northern shores of the continent now known as Africa. My doors are located a few miles from the northern the coast. You will head to the Maritime part of the mountains. This is where it's elevation is the lowest."

"That's where will find Julia?" Tyler asked excited.

"And Nico!" Hazel said with Percy. They remembered that he was captured by Gaea's forces when he investigating them.

"Yes, but like you all are aware, it is guarded by many of Gaea's army. That's why we brought back the Heroes of Old and trained you all to be Argonauts."

"What's the specifics then?" Achilles asked. "I'm not sending my troops in until we know what were up against. Monsters? Defenses?"

"I was getting to that?" Thanatos told him. "You might want to brace yourselves, you're not going to like what you're going to hear."

"Anything dealing with Gaea is unlikeable," said Theseus.

Thanatos sighed. "As you know I've performed many reconnaissance missions over the past few weeks. I have gotten the exact number of her forces. My doors are guarded by Twenty-thousand plus monsters, creatures, and machines alike."

"TWENTY-THOUSAND!" Frank exclaimed.

Bellerophon choked on the water he was drinking. "You lie!"

The room erupted in shouting and protesting.

"How do you expect a small force of seven-hundred Argonauts to go up against twenty-thousand?" Perseus asked earnestly.

"It's a suicide mission!" Hercules yelled.

"How did she even recruit that many numbers?" Annabeth asked.

"We're screwed, SCREWED!" Grover moaned.

"ENOUGH!" Thanatos shouted standing to his feet now. "PULL YOURSELVES TOGETHER! I have not seen a sorrier bunch. You are ARGONAUTS! You are the best of the best. You are the most elite warriors that Olympus has to offer. You will go to my doors, shut them, and lock them. If you do not, then civilization will end as we know it! Although I'm the God of Death, I enjoy living, like most of you. Some of you might think death will be a sweet escape but you are sadly mistaken. If Gaea takes control there will be no underworld or afterlife. It will be merely nothingness! I entrust that you and your generals will think of a brilliant plan and you're training and determination will place you as the victors. I bet my job on it!"

"You must succeed or die trying!" Thanatos finished.

Everyone slowly sat back into their seats.

Calmly, Achilles asked, "Will there be any Giants?"

"Luckily, just one, Pallas."

Annabeth's face went pale. "Athena killed her. She may not be one of the major Giants but still a giant nonetheless. Is she still holding a grudge against Athena and all her children?"

Thanatos nodded.

"The Mark of Athena will burn through Rome..." Annabeth trailed off reciting part of the Prophecy.

"That's the least of our worries," said Achilles.

"What are we going to do about the twenty-thousand monsters?" Piper asked.

"We'll kill them all!" Clarisse said standing to her feet.

Tyler nodded his head in agreement, "HELL YEAH!"

"Didn't King Leonidas and three hundred spartans hold off an army of three-hundred thousand persians?" asked Octavian. "If they could do it, so can we."

Jason smiled, "That must have been the first optimistic thing I have ever heard you say."

"You are right young Octavian," Leonidas answered. "But we also had the aid of a couple thousand soldiers. Plus we were able set up defense in Thermopylae Pass were only six men could enter abreast. This allowed us not be overwhelmed and we lasted for three days. Eventually the Persians found a way around and we were slaughtered. If we were back at Thermopylae Pass...we have demigods with demigod powers...Zhang, Grace, Jackson, not to mention the Heroes of Old, all the wonderful machines and traps we have...Yes! I say we would be able to do it. Sadly, we are not at Thermopylae Pass."

"We CAN do that!" Frank said. "We're going to be fighting in the Atlas Mountains. There are probably dozens of passes that we can bottle neck Gaea's forces in!"

"So you have been reading the gift your father gave you?" Thanatos asked eagerly.

Frank nodded with a grin. "Sun Tzu is a genius!"

"See, I believe you will be able to work something out!" Thanatos almost cheered. "I must be off again...more recon," said Thanatos. "General Achilles, you and the Heroes of Old, and your best tacticians work with Mr. Zhang here to work out a solid battle plan. A few more thing before I leave; I give you a map of the Atlas Mountains which outline the exact location of my doors and the surrounding area. You are also aware that Gaea has figured out how to duplicate monsters. That may explain the vast size of her army. Also, she has brought back more from the dead to strengthen her armies; Minos, Paris of Troy, Midas and Lityerses , and Ajax."

"Ajax? He was on our side in the Trojan War!" Odysseus protested.

"Gaea is most persuasive," Thanatos told him gravely.

"Coward!" Odysseus spat. "Always was a coward...and a loony!"

"Lit got free," Jason exclaimed. "It was bound to happen, I guess," he said in defeat.

Thanatos turned to Achilles. "...and Prince Hector of Troy will be leading her army. He seeks his revenge on you Achilles."

All eyes went to Achilles. Achilles set his jaw with determination. Not even ghosts from his past could stop him now.

"Set a course for the Atlas Mountains Mr. Valdez and I'll see you on the other side."

With that, Thanatos faded into the shadows and disappeared like he always did.

Leo shivered. "When he says other side, I sure hope he meant like the Atlas Mountains, not THE other side."

Everyone ignored Leo as usual and looked to Achilles. He remained expressionless but if he did feel something, possibly anger or fear, he hid it well.

He nodded his head. "Chase, Jackson, both Graces, Zhang, La Rue, Reyna and my fellow Heroes of Old will stay. Everyone else may leave or remain here if yo wish. We have some planning to do."

Tyler and a few others got up and walked out the door. Tyler was the last one out. He had much on his mind he wanted to think about, but unfortunately that wouldn't be the case.

"Hey Tyler," Leo called to him.

Tyler let out a sigh and turned to look at the short Latino boy expectantly.

"Whats up?" Leo said dumbly.

No reply just a cold stare from the hard brown eyes.

"Anyways...uh...seeing is that you're the new guy and you don't have a bunk, I was thinking I could set up with one. Maybe a tour as well?"

"You don't want to stay and make the big battle plans?" Tyler asked with a hint of ridicule.

"I'm half lover and half builder. Fighting? Not my style. I don't destroy, like I said, I'm a builder."

"Fine, I guess." Tyler agreed.

Leo grinned. "Come on then!"

Leo showed Tyler the upper deck, the helm, the cannons, the defense mechanisms, the engine room, and finally they found themselves back in the giant lower deck with all the hammocks. Leo led him to an empty hammock next to his.

"What's up guys?" Leo said to a few male demigods that were in the nearby are. They were either playing cards, reading a books, or polishing their armor.

"This here is Tyler Horace, Son of Eris, the new guy. Tyler, this is Travis and Connor Stoll, Malcolm, Butch, Will Solace, and Jake Mason."

"Sup," they nodded their heads in greeting. Tyler nodded back. They went back to what they were doing.

"And this here is Chris Rodriguez. Me and him go way back. Are people got to stick together, right?" Leo said nudging Chris who was fixing his hammock.

"Valdez, what the are you talking about?" Chris asked.

"You know...we're both from the Latino persuasion and all."

"Shut up Valdez."

"Yeah, shut up Valdez!" Everyone else agreed.

"So, Leo, what did you hear at the big meeting?" Travis asked while looking over his poker hand.

"You'll hear about it later," Leo waved him off. Travis sighed. Leo turned his attention back to Tyler. "This here will be your bunk," Leo said gesturing to the empty Hammock.

Tyler sat in it and looked toward the celling. He pulled out his knife and started to spin and twirl it. He found he did this a lot when he was deep in thought.

"So what do you think?"

"Of what," Tyler said, saying something finally.

"Of the Argo II?"

"Fair enough," Tyler said not really paying any attention to the Latino Santa Elf.

The only thought was on his mind was Julia.

* * *

><p>Back in the cafeteria, the large group made sure Tyler had left the room and was well out of earshot before they began speaking.<p>

"I don't trust him," Achilles said. "I don't trust Eris or anything to do with her, especially her son, this is not good. If we had it my way, I would've tossed him off side of the ship already."

"You've already made that clear," Annabeth said.

"Painfully obvious more like," Percy added.

Achilles ignored them and looked back down at the map of the Atlas Mountains and spoke with his fellow Originals. They began discussing layouts and maneuvers.

"This Julia, she's a daughter of Athena right?" Jason Grace asked.

"It looked like it. She kind of looked like Annabeth, well, as much of her as I could see," Percy nodded.

"Could she be the one?" Piper asked.

"You guys are speaking about her like she is for sure a daughter of Athena," Annabeth said with a pang of jealousy. She cursed inwardly to herself for being so petty.

"It's obvious she is," Percy told Annabeth. "Even more, she was taken by a Venti, what if she got free? She would be out in Europe, the original Rome, all by herself. Wisdom's daughter walks alone."

Everyone else nodded their heads in agreement.

"I just hope she's okay," Hazel said. "For Tyler's sake. That kid is definitely messed up in the head. If he finds out she's hurt or worse..." She shuddered at the thought.

"I'm sure she's fine," Grover assured them.

"If Julia's anything like Annabeth, she'll be more than fine," Percy nodded.

* * *

><p>Julia reached the Atlas Mountains after an hour of walking from the stony beach. From there she had to climb up cliff faces and vault over ledges. She had to hike through sharp rocks and slowly make her way down step slopes to climb more cliffs. Hera said walk south, not climb shit! Julia was weary and exhausted. She had spent the past several hours walking and climbing.<p>

In order to take her mind off the grueling journey ahead, she found refuge in her thoughts. She thought about her mission. Find the troops and rally them. Short and simple. Yeah, but where were they? The thought of the pale boy kept on coming back as well. Who was this pale bale? Julia hoped the description, 'pale,' didn't mean the boy was dead. She hated seeing dead people even though she's seen way too many to count. She witnessed many lives because of a certain WWII Trench Knife. This brought her thoughts to Tyler.

Tyler was on her mind often. She hoped he was okay. Maybe the kids with the dragon t-shirts helped him. If Julia knew Tyler, then she knew that he was looking for her just as she was looking for him. Hopefully they would find each other. She also wondered why the two got along so well. They were a dichotomy of characters but yet they were an amazing team. Julia remembered reading a biography about George Washington, a book she stole in England. Washington's two main advisors were also exact opposites in personality. However, hey helped build the foundation of America. They were responsible for the current America. Julia smiled, that was her and Tyler. Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton.

She also thought about her heritage. She came to terms with her beliefs after an hour of climbing. She was the daughter of Athena, daughters of Athena were supposed to be logical, and the logic choice was that the Olympians did exist and they needed her help. They had the most evidence to support their existence. Deep down inside she knew Hera wasn't lying or crazy. Hera had sparked a flame in Julia's gut that only spread and grew stronger in her body. She was a demigod. She wondered how many other demigods where out there. Was Tyler a demigod too? That would explain how they could find each other or why he could fight so well. Who was his godly parent? Ares? Hades? Hades seemed a definite choice especially since Tyler could kill so easily. Death came naturally to him.

After running out of things to think about she would inspect the Greek Sword that she carried with her. She managed to make a sheath out of her sweater. She slung it over her shoulder like a backpack. Julia didn't even have a clue on what to do with it. She doubted if she did run into something to fight, she would clumsily hold the weapon and fail. Tyler did teach her a bunch of different moves that she inwardly swore to never use on a person. Tyler never taught her about using a sword though. At least with the switch blade, Julia could defend herself, while with the sword would be awkward with it. Julia discovered she was making herself feel inferior and usually she was the one who made others feel inferior.

Julia tried to rationalize her thoughts, "You're a daughter of Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom and War. You can use a freaking sword like you are born to do it because you were born to do it. Hell yeah!"

"Ugh! I am so tired of walking!"

It was dark when Julia climbed her a millionth cliff. Julia looked up into the night sky to see all the stars where out. She studied the constellations and recognized Orion, Hercules, and many more. It made Julia's brain hurt when she thought that the constellations were actually based off true stories, not fictional ones. The people she saw in the night sky once walked the Earth, very much like her at that particular moment.

After using up all her thoughts, she became ever increasingly bored which lead her to the discovery of the art of talking to one's self.

"I wish you guys would float on down here too talk to me," she said to the constellations. "Walking sucks!... So bored, and hungry, and thirsty, and sleepy. My feet hurt! Julia don't talk like that. You're strong, you can do this. Complete the mission, complete the mission...wait, what's my mission again?"

Julia didn't see it till she was too late. She was too enveloped with complaining to herself. She froze, in front of her was a camp fire surrounded by weird looking creatures. Julia instinctually ducked behind a boulder to hider herself. The creatures around the fire were of different shapes and sizes. One was a snake women, another was giant with one-eye, she recognized a six-armed giant, another one made heart sink. It was one of the werewolves from France.

"Why we out here in cold?" The one-eyed giant griped similar to Julia earlier.

"Lady Pallas has orders from Lady Gaea. We're rounding up the heroes that the Gods are bringing back to life?" hissed the snake lady. "Another squad picked one up yesterday. Said his name was Aeneas."

Julia peeked over the boulder too get a better look. She accidentally shifted too much of her weight and scattered a few loose rocks that tumbled down a hill. She watched as each rock hit every other rock with a loud clang the whole way down.

"Damn," Julia cursed to herself.

"What that?" six-arm asked.

The werewolf's ears perked and he barked.

"Demigod!" snake women hissed after sniffing the air.

Julia overstayed her welcomed. She climbed to her feet and turned to escape. She ran straight into another six-armed giant that crept up behind her. Julia drew her sword and slashed at the Giant. Julia shrieked in surprise, the sword didn't feel awkward at all, it felt perfect. She felt awesome. She felt badass!

She finished off the giant who sunk to it's knees by cutting off it's head.

"That's right bitch, I can use a sword!"

Her celebration was short lived because the werewolf was upon her. Julia swung again but the blade passed right through it. It should've died. The werewolf seemed to laugh at her. It lunged and Julia ducked out of the way. She was pretty proud of the maneuver but then something solid struck her in the head from behind. It was the one-eye. She felt herself fall forward and saw the world rush up to meet her. Then everything went black.

* * *

><p>Julia woke with her head throbbing and her vision was blurred. She reached to touch where she had been hit but an another hand stopped hers.<p>

"She's up," a low voice said above her.

Julia looked to the speaker. It was a giant man, with giant hands, who has tending to the wound on her head. She tried to sit up but the giant man stopped her. From where she lay, she observed she was in a dark confined room, she heard the sound of dripping water, and a musty scent crawled up her noes.

She heard an other figure move to her side. She looked at who it was. At first she thought it was Tyler. The person had black shaggy hair with dark brown eyes. Her vision returned back to normal to reveal it wasn't Tyler. This boy was much too young to be him. He seemed about Julia's age, he wore a black skull t-shirt and a skull ring. His skin showed signs that it used to be a dark olive color at one point in his life but now it was ghostly pale. Julia tried to speak and say, 'pale boy.'

The boy stopped her from speaking. "Don't try to talk, move, or fall back to sleep. You need to stay awake. Orion says you have a concussion."

Julia merely nodded.

"Don't worry, everything is going to be okay." The boy said gently. "My name is Nico Di Angelo."

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	16. Here We Go

The Argonauts were gathered in the cafeteria of the Argo II. They were having one final feast before they would take on the day that was ahead of them. In the morning they would reach the shores of the Atlas Mountains where they would do battle with Gaea's massive army. An army twenty-six times larger than their own. The mood and atmosphere in the cafeteria was solemn. Many suffered from a lack of appetite due to anxiety. They were having spaghetti for dinner in honor of their first meal of training when they were known as 'Grunts.' That very meal made them all vomit during PT the day after. The spaghetti dinner reference brought forth a few grins but nothing more. In conclusion, the morale was low.

In hopes to raise the spirit, Achilles stood to his feet at the Heroes of Old table. He tapped his fork to his drinking glass. He didn't have to wait for silence for no one was speaking. He cleared his throat and said what he had to say:

"Good evening Argonauts," he began softly. When he wasn't barking orders, his voice was usually soft. Now it was even lower.

"Good evening General," the Argonauts replied softly.

"We are about to embark on the greatest quest ever given to a Hero. It is not a quest dealt by God, Man, or Oracle. It is a quest commanded by ourselves. It is a quest that we took upon ourselves because we love this Earth and those who reside in it. If the quest fails...civilization as we know it, will end."

"I know that you have heard many of my opinions and others' about this world, the gods, Giants, and mortals. I want you to remove what the things that you have heard from my fellow Heroes of Old and I, and place it out of your thoughts. What has been said is merely petty whining. Everything that has been said will not matter because it all comes down to succeeding and failing! If we fail, then everything will be gone. The fields, the trees, cities, emotions, love! It will all cease to exist. Gaea will cast a tyrannical shadow over the land, sea, and sky! All that you know, hate, and love will be lost!"

"We can love, we can laugh, and we can smile. Life is not about fighting but sometimes when your freedom is threatened, then that is what life is about. If freedom is at stake, then we fight! WE FIGHT!"

"WE FIGHT!" The Argonauts fired back.

"I will now quote the great and late Winston Churchill. I had the honor to meet him when I was in the Underworld."

Achilles cleared his throat.

"'We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender'" (Winston Churchill 30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965).

"WE FIGHT!" Achilles screamed.

"WE FIGHT!" The Argonauts echoed.

"This is what you will not do! You will not fight for the Gods because they tell you to and will you not fight because the Heroes of Old order you to. You fight because you know it is right and true. You fight because you know if you don't, you will never get the chance to again."

"YOU FIGHT FOR THE ARGONAUTS TO YOUR LEFT AND TO YOUR RIGHT!"

"AHOO! AHOO!" The Argonauts chanted.

"And if we fail, at least we failed knowing that we were fighting for the right reasons. Live together, fight together, die together!"

"LIVE TOGETHER, FIGHT TOGETHER, DIE TOGETHER!" The Argonauts roared back.

They were stomping their feet on the deck of the ship and pounding their fist on the table tops.

Achilles waited till it was silent and grinned. A grin on the man's face was an expression that many of the Argonauts had not seen before.

"Now, I order to stop acting like a bunch of corpses, eat your food, and laugh and talk with your fellow Argonauts. Spend these last moments wisely, you may never get the chance again."

The depressing spell that hung over the room was broken. It was replaced with laughing, singing, and dancing. People got up from their seats and delivered friendly/farewell embraces or good-luck handshakes to their friends around the room.

After a couple hours of festivity Hercules stood to his feet and called for silence.

"I would like to take this moment to honor all the heroes who met a tragic demise in the past," he said with his glass held to the sky.

"To the heroes!" everyone else said with their glasses raised.

"I would also like to use this time to apologize. I apologize to my fellow Argonauts for possibly leading them astray. I would also like to apologize to Hunters of Artemis who sadly couldn't join us today. In my heart, I hope they could be here. I apologize especially to Zoe Nightshade, my family, and many others who I have harmed. There are no excuses for my actions."

Hercules sincerity cause a domino affect at the Heroes of Old table.

Theseus stood to his feet. "I'm sorry Ariadne," he said while looking down at his sword. The legend goes that his sword was given to him by her.

Then it was Bellerophon, "I seek forgiveness from the Gods and the Amazons."

Then Jason, "To Medea."

Odysseus was next, "To Calypso and my wife."

Leonidas stood, "To my men and to my queen."

Perseus got up, "To the Gods."

Finally it was Achilles. "I'm so sorry Patroclus, Prince Hector, and many others. I hope the names that have been mentioned by all will have the chance to hear what has been recited but I know that it is unlikely. However, we have the Argonauts, the greatest heroes in history, as our witnesses. If we succeed in our quest, I can trust that what has just been said will be told to generations to come. We are truly sorry for our crimes and there is not a day that goes by where we do not ponder upon them. Not even in the Underworld did the torment rest. Despite what SOME have said about us, we are trying to repent for our sins, maybe not in the past life, or the afterlife, but maybe in this life."

There was a silence. Jason Grace raised his glass into the air. "To the Heroes of Old!"

"No," the original Jason responded. "To the Argonauts; past and current!"

"To the Argonauts," they all said softly while taking a sip from their drinking glasses.

After a moment of reflection, dinner continued with the laughing and talking. It concluded with the children of Apollo, Greek and Roman alike, performing an a-cappella version of, "Come Sail Away," by Styx. Then Dakota and the McDonald twins climbed on top of their table and in a sugar-high state, due to the abuse of kool-aid, they sang and danced to "Drunken Sailor". Laughter rang through the night air.

After dinner many of the Argonauts crawled sleepily into their hammocks. Some laid in their hammocks, silently going over all the training, techniques, and maneuvers that they were taught in the their head. Some checked their armor and weapons, and then checked them again. Others like Annabeth, Percy, Leo, Piper, Jason, Thalia, Frank, Hazel, Grover, and Reyna found themselves on the upper-deck, leaning against the railing, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea bellow them. Percy had his arm wrapped around Annabeth, Jason did the same to Piper, and so did Frank and Hazel. They stood in silence thinking about the upcoming morning and what adversities they would face. Later on in the night Tyler Horace walked up behind the group and joined them at the railing. He had a grim expression on his face.

"Sup," Leo greeted him.

Tyler nodded, "Couldn't sleep."

"Julia?" Hazel asked.

"Yeah," he told her.

"I know what you're going through. I have a brother who was taken too." Hazel told him.

Tyler nodded.

"Cheer up dude," Frank said. "Tomorrow you will have the chance to saver her while killing a bunch of monster in the process."

Tyler nodded again. The group went back to discussing previous topics and laughed over jokes.

"What am I then?" Tyler blurted. "Am I the seventh half-blood, am I an Argonaut?"

"Sure, why not," Percy said.

"General Achilles thinks otherwise," stated Tyler.

"Hey, don't worry about him. He just has to get to know you," Grover explained. "He just feels, 'iffy,' about you because you know, your mom sort of started the Trojan War."

Tyler ignored him. "Do any of you even know me?" Tyler asked. "To you I'm just this psycho. In your hearts, you agree with Achilles. I'm a ticking time bomb, I'm not to be trusted. You think I'm some creep who has the hots for a fifteen year old girl. Well, you're wrong."

"We don't think that about you at all Tyler," Piper said gently.

"Let me tell you all something, Julia is a sister to me and I will save her, even if it's the last thing I do. AND If any of you get in my way, I'll end you."

"Chill out dude, we only want to help you," Thalia said getting offended.

Tyler took a few moments to breathe. "I'm sorry, sometimes I just blurt out things; things that scare people. It's probably my mothers fault, the evil genes she passed down."

"Don't worry about it," Jason said. "You're one of us and we take care of each other."

"We'll find Julia, we promise," Annabeth assured him.

"I promised too," Tyler told them. "I just hope we can keep it."

"We will," Reyna said sweetly. "I also want to let the rest of you know that what ever happens tomorrow, I'm grateful for getting to know you and being your friends."

"Amen to that to that sister," Thalia agreed.

The rest nodded and patted each other on their backs.

"I'm not sure of a lot of things," said Tyler. "I don't know where I was born, where I'm from, who my father is, or what my childhood was like; but what I do know is this….A lot of monsters are going to die tomorrow and Gaea will suffocate due to my fingers wrapped around her throat."

"Ditto," said Leo uncomfortably.

They looked off into the ocean with the moon light reflecting off it's waters. The light danced along the waves as the Argo II soared over them. Tyler grinned inwardly. There would be chaos tomorrow, much chaos, and he would be the root cause of it. Gaea will pay.

* * *

><p>Julia laid on the hard stony floor of the cave with her head resting on Nico's lap. It made her embarrassed at first but Nico and everyone else insisted. She had a concussion and they didn't think it was safe for her to rest her head on solid rock. They were located in cave with a barred metal door at the mouth. If there was more to describe about it, then there would be more description, however it was plain old gray gloomy cave. Outside of it was a hall that they could not see where it lead. It was dimly lit with torches allowing some of their light to spill into the cave making it barely visible. The cave they were in was located in one of Gaea's bases in the Atlas Mountains. Apparently, Julia was brought in the night before.<p>

Nico introduced Julia to others who were imprisoned with them.

There was Aeneas. A Trojan Warrior who was seeking refuge at the end of the Trojan War when they lost to Greece. By being a son of Aphrodite he was beyond good looking. He had auburn hair, he was stocky, eloquent, courteous, and charming. He was the counter-part of Odysseus and the grand father of the founders of Rome.

Then there was Orion, the giant hunter. He was about nine fee tall and well muscled with deep blue eyes and rumpled brown hair. Julia remembered from the myths how he was the only male that Artemis seemed to take a liking to.

There were also the twin brothers, Romulus, and Remus. The founders of Rome. The creators of the republic, the empire, and the Legions. The only difference that set the brothers apart was that one had black curly hair and the other's was orange. Every other aspect about them was alike. They both wore mischievous smiles and they both had crazy eyes.

Finally, there was the only women of the group, Atalanta. Although she was a women, she seemed to be the dominant one of the group. She kept Romulus and Remus in check, Aeneas respected her wishes, and Orion stayed out of her way. She was beautiful but her beauty did not hide the authority that she commanded. She was famous for being one of the greatest hunters of all time and she was able to keep up with her male counterparts.

To pass the time, Nico told Julia more about what Hera had tried to explain to her. He told her about the two demigod camps, Percy Jackson, Jason Grace, several other names, their roles in the Second Titan War, and now the impending war with Giants. He explained to her about that the Gods had a desperate plan to bring back old heroes from the dead in order to help the new ones save Olympus. Nico's job was to aid those heroes across the boarder between the dead and the living. The Gods already sent an advanced party which included Achilles, Bellerophon, Hercules, Jason, Perseus, Odysseus, Leonidas, and Theseus. However, that wasn't enough. The Gods sent Nico back to the Underworld to get more heroes but his mission turned sour when he arrived at Thanatos's doors. The group of heroes he was with were inevitable captured. Then they were locked away in a dungeon in one of Gaea's several bases. The base they sat in at that very moment was one about a couple dozen miles away from Death's Doors.

In return, Julia told them her story. She explained Tyler to him and the past two years of their lives. She asked Nico if he had heard of a Tyler before. He said he didn't. So, Tyler being a son of Hades was out of the question.

They lounged around the room what seemed like hours. Julia was about to go crazy from boredom and she didn't even have it that bad compared to the others. Nico and the others had been there for two weeks with only slop to eat and rocks to use as pillows. Julia luckily had Nico's thigh to rest her head on. Julia thought that besides having a foreboding appearance; with his dark clothing and his pale skin, Nico was actually gentle and sweet. Sort of like Tyler but not so much. Tyler was a killer and from listening to Nico speak, he didn't seem like one. He was just forced to be close to the dead, he didn't want to cause death, he just was in all the wrong places at all the wrong times.

"What are we going to do Nico?" Julia whispered upward to him after a couple hours of silence.

"The others and I have been planning an escape," Nico told her. "Next time the guards come in to feed us, we ambush them, kill them, take their weapons, make way to the armory, and escape."

"That's sounds like a good plan but do you even know how to get to the armory?" Julia asked.

"No, we all had bags on our heads when we were brought here."

"Do you know how many other guards there will be?"

"No."

"Your plan sucks," Julia extrapolated.

"What, why?"

"I think it's obvious," Julia said plainly. "Couldn't you do that thing that you were talking about earlier, what did you call it?"

"Shadow travel?"

"Yeah, that."

"I've been trying," Nico told her. "They must be shielding my powers or putting something in my food to prevent me. I have to eat to live though. The only options we have is my plan. It may suck but its the only one we got...and these geniuses couldn't think of anything better," Nico said gesturing to the Heroes around him.

They shrugged in return.

"They've been drugging our food too. It's hard to think clearly," said Aeneas.

"Okay, how long do we wait for the guards?" Julia asked.

"A few more hours," Orion answered with his booming but oddly soft voice.

"That means you better get comfortable," Nico told her.

"Great," Julia sighed.

* * *

><p>The hours eventually did pass and the guards appeared from the hall with keys in hand. There were four of them in total. Two Dracaena and two Earthborn. The Earthborn held plates of slop in their hands and the dracaena had the keys. Orion and Atalanta armed with stones scurried to the sides of the of the cave mouth to hide from their captors in hopes to ambush them.<p>

"You think you can move?" Nico whispered to Julia as he grabbed a rock.

Julia nodded slowly.

The dracaena approached the barred door and inserted the key in the lock. Orion and Atalanta prepared to strike but they were beaten to the punch. From the ceiling above the monsters, dropped a shadow. The torches flickered while the air woodshed. The plates of slop fell out of the Earthborns' hands and exploded into a million pieces on the stone floor. The Earthborn followed the plates' example and the dracaena exploded into gold dust. All this happened in a blink of an eye

The shadow turned the key in the lock and swung the door open. The shadow took the shape of a human and was armed with a Japanese Samurai Katana. It reached for it's head and pulled the hood from it's head. The shadow was in fact a male japanese teenager with black hair and brown eyes.

In a Japanese accent he said, "I am Kiyoshi Hanzo, son of Nemesis, an agent of the ILH."

After regaining his composure from the surprise, Nico asked, "ILH? I have no idea clue that is." Nico and the others were now standing to their feet.

There was a sharp pain in Julia's skull, at first she thought it was because of her concussion but images flashed in her mind. She saw dozens of teenagers armed with various weapons hacking at dummies, people marching through parade grounds, salutes, and things fighting

"ILH, International League of Heroes. Founded in 2001 by Athena in response to the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks," Julia gasped while holding her head.

"How-" Nico began.

"Hera," Julia managed. "Memories coming back."

Julia groaned as she slowly stood to her feet and leaned against Nico's shoulder. "I think I was part of it."

"This ILH?" Atalanta asked.

"Yes," Hanzo answered. "That is Agent Julia Myers and she will be leading our army." Hanzo gave a smart salute. "There is no time to explain more, we must hurry. The ILH is about to begin an assault on this base. We need to get out before it is destroyed.

"Um?" Nico managed.

"Here, this will help counteract the drugs they have been giving you," Hanzo told them while handing them each ambrosia squares.

They all popped the ambrosia into their mouths and instantly the grogginess that they had be experiencing dissipated. They felt energy and strength return to their bodies. The pain in Julia's head began to recede.

"Okay," Nico said gesturing for Hanzo to lead the way.

Hanzo nodded and took off down the halls. Orion, Atalanta, Aeneas, Romulus and Remus, and Nico with Julia clinging on his shoulder, behind him. They fought their way through the cave tunnels. The guards had no time to react to Hanzo's speed. He cut down any monster that got in his way with his katana and if they were too far to reach, he pulled out a couple of shurikens and flung them at them. If he missed any monsters along the way, Orion and Atalanta made quick work of them with their fist. After several minutes of jogging through tunnels, cutting down monsters, passing cave entrances that led to more tunnels, they finally reached a door that lead into the armory. The group quickly gathered in the room to retrieve their stuff. Hanzo stood guard at the entrance.

Nico grabbed his pitch black Stygian Iron Sword and Julia her bronze makhaira. Orion strapped on his armor and his shield. He slid his knife, that was about the size of a sword for a normal sized man, into it's sheath and wielded his club in his non-shield hand. Atalanta strung her bow and slung it over her shoulder and carried her spear in her hands. Romulus and Remus threw on their Roman armor, strapped on their Roman shields, and wielded their twin gladiuses. Aeneas donned his Trojan Armor and shield, sheathed his sword, and picked up his spear.

When they were all ready they rejoined Hanzo outside.

"Which way is the exit?" Atalanta asked.

Hanzo pointed in the direction.

"I'll clear the way," she grinned and disappeared as blur when she sprinted in the direction the Japanese boy pointed. The legends were true, she did have the ability of superhuman speed.

"Wait," Orion protested. "This doesn't count," he shouted as he ran after her. The ground shook every time he took a stride.

Hanzo looked at them quizzically.

"Before we left the Underworld, the made this childish bet about who could kill the most monsters," Aeneas explained. "Them being the greatest hunters in history make them very competitive. They fight for the title."

Hanzo nodded in understanding. "Let us continue then," Hanzo said while politely gesturing his hand in the direction they were to go.

They sprinted through the halls passing puddles of mud which were once Earthborn and various monsters who were slowly disintegrating into bronze dust. They were either pierced with arrows or crippled by blows from a club. Atalanta and Orion were doing good work.

As they ran, Nico questioned Hanzo.

"Tell me more about this ILH."

Hanzo answered, "It is an organization sanctioned by the Gods. Two half-bloods from every nation of the world are selected. They are taken to Olympus and are trained as couriers and bodyguards for the Gods. The two demigods that are chosen oversee the rest of the demigods of the nation they represent. Most of the time it's only one demigod per country due to the fact that there aren't many demigods outside of America. They work behind the scenes, in the shadows, in secret from the rest of the half-bloods. I doubt Gaea even knows about us."

"So, I'm one of these operatives?" Julia asked.

"Yes, however Operative Myers and Operative Horace have been missing for the past two years." Hanzo answered. "We concluded that you were killed in action."

"Wait, how come I didn't know about this ILH till today?" Nico asked.

"The Gods wanted to keep it secret from the general population. They feared if they found out that the Gods were, 'playing favorites,' the general population would be angered and would start a war."

Nico nodded. "I can see that happening." He understood his fellow half-bloods very well. They could barely get along with each other as it was.

"Wait, you said something about an Operative Horace?" Julia asked.

"Yes, Operative Tyler Horace. You and him represent the continent of North America. You being from Canada and Horace from America. I am one of the representatives of the Japanese nation, actually the only one."

"I think I remember," Julia said touching her hand to her head. There was a feeling that Julia did in fact know Tyler in the past but it was one of dislike and irritation.

"How does a person get chosen to be one of these operatives?" Aeneas asked.

"It depends. I was chosen because I had no mortal parents to look after me. Usually you are chosen if the Gods see something in a demigod that they like or pity. They believe the strongest spirits reside in the most tragic characters. Take Tyler Horace for example. His father was an alcoholic that abused him. Tyler Horace killed his father at the age of seven with a kitchen knife. His mother, Eris, goddess of Chaos, brought him to Mount Olympus to be an ILH operative."

"Okay, you said something about the ILH launching an assault on this base?" asked Remus.

Hanzo nodded and checked his wrist watch. "Actually, the assault has just begun. The army is made up of the demigods from many nations. Romans and Greeks. It's not just demigods but children of demigods and their children. Living outside of the U.S. means less monsters. Demigods around the world can survive and prosper without the aid of Camp Half-Blood or Camp Jupiter. The numbers have grown quite large. I would say about ten-thousand and counting."

Romulus let out a whistle in awe.

Julia was about to ask about her past but Hanzo politely held up his hand. "Our conversation has slowed us down immensely, there is a battle outside that we need to attend too. I will answer your question later, for now we must hurry."

They group sprinted down the hall and the pace doubled. After a few more moments of running, they reached the exit. Atalanta and Orion were already there and were peering out of the cave entrance. The others joined them. They looked outside to see a massive battle occurring. It was in a courtyard of a massive fort. Young teenagers of every land and clime, armed with a wide array of weaponry, speaking in different tongues, were doing battle with a horde of monsters. Fireballs streaked the night sky and crashed into the stone walls of the fort. Screams, yelling, and clanging of metal erupted from all over.

"Seventeen," Orion smiled confidently to Atalanta.

"Nineteen," Atalanta smiled back mockingly.

"Looks like we made just in time for the party brother," Romulus grinned.

"We can't let them take all the fun can we brother?" Remus beamed.

"Your troops need a leader Operative Meyers," said Hanzo softly.

"What do you mean my troops?" Julia asked.

"Before you disappeared, you were the senior officer and the supposed leader of the ILH's militia in case war broke out. Your were Athena's top prospect and one our best tactician, especially for your age."

Julia shook her head. "Are you sure you have the right person?"

"I have seen you in combat before, I am very sure. Even if most of your memory is gone, I believe your ingrained training will take over and make up for your lack of memory. You will do fine." Hanzo reassured her.

Julia gulped, adjusted her grip on her Makhaira, she stepped forward hesitantly, and hoped that courage and bravery would come to met her. It didn't. The sight of the battle made her want to turn and run, and her head still throbbed. However some of her memory was coming back. She remembered that she was a fierce leader and that fear was only natural. It would only aid her in the long run.

Julia gulped again, "Here we go...I guess?"

She raised her sword and rushed into the fray, the others raised there weapons as well, and joined her.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	17. Blitzkrieg: Part One

"General Hector, the demigods have arrived," hissed a dracaena who was eyeing the giant warship in the sky hovering above them on the over rocky cliff they were standing on.

"Obviously," said Hector scornfully. Then he turned to his colleagues standing near him. "Right then, I will leave you this matter, General Polyphemus and King Minos, in your very capable hands," smiled Prince Hector of Troy and now the head General of Lady Pallas's army.

Hector would have been a handsome man if it were not for the many bite marks, talon marks, scars, scratches, and scrapes that covered his body from head to toe. His previous life was not so kind to him. Besides the brutal lacerations though, he had a charming appearance and he was well muscled.

The humungous, one-eyed, blind cyclops grinned and licked his lips hungrily. "Finally, revenge! Nobody shall pay!"

"The little wretch known as Theseus will suffer," Minos snarled.

"Oh, they will my friends, they will. Achilles and the rest will wish they were never brought back." Hector smiled. "I take my leave then." He walked away from the group, heading deeper into the mountains. A company of Trojan Warriors followed him acting as personal body guards. As he walked, Hector wore an evil smile on his face.

"What are your order sires?" a Telekhine asked turning to Polyphemus and Minos.

"Prepare the catapults, assemble the troops, and take me to my bunker!" Polyphemus barked.

"As you wish sire," the Telekhine smiled.

"Splendid idea sires," agreed a Dracaena. "They won't even know what hit them!"

Polyphemus and Minos cackled with delight as they were lead away to their bunker were they would oversee the battle from safety. In Polyphemus's case, he would listen. The two of them laughed hysterically as they fled to the safety of their bunker.

* * *

><p>There was a great fog that swelled around the Argo II when it's final destination was reached.<p>

"We're here," said Leo from the machine gun he was operating at the bow of the ship.

"LAND HO!" Perseus called from the crows nest.

"I can't see anything, the clouds are in the way," Piper complained as she tried to peer behind the great obstructing balls of moisture and grayness.

"It's not clouds," Grover explained as he sniffed the air. "It's the Mist, these parts of the mountains are crawling with so many monsters that the Mist is heavy here, just like San Francisco. There have been recent reports in this region of the coast about a bunch of cargo ships and mortal vessels disappearing here. This is also where Death's Doors are hidden. Thanatos wouldn't want any random mortal to stumble upon them, would he? Just give it a sec and your eyes will adjust."

The, 'clouds,' eventually parted to allow the onlooking Argonauts to see the Atlas Mountains in it's true nature. The mountains differed between low and gentle slopes, rocky cliffs, and towering summits that pierced the sky. The crew of the Argo II planned to land on one of the cliffs that was bordering the ocean. The cliff chosen was one of the lower ones that jutted out of the ocean fifty feet in the air. The ocean waves crashed and broke against it's surface. The gulls flew in and out of its rocky face as they landed or left their nests. The cliff was about two miles wide and it was connected to a ravine that led into the Atlas Mountains. The cliff would have been beautiful and serene landscape if it wasn't for the large army of monsters gathered on it and in the ocean below it, there were a fleet of about two dozen warships staffed with even more monsters.

The monsters gathered on the cliff and in the warships ranged between Cyclopes, Empousai, Laistrygonian Giants, Scythian Dracaena, Telekhines, Centaur, Hellhounds, Scorpions, and Earthborn. There was at least five-thousand in total and they were armed to the teeth. Every monster roared, howled, yelled, shouted, screamed, barked and shrieked up at the Argonauts who were hovering in the flying Warship above them. They yelled out taunts and cat-calls to the heroes. They were armed with swords, spears, clubs, axes, scimitars, bows, and many more deadly devices. They manned catapults, several other war machines, and there was even an old WWII tank. Their warships were armed with cannons and giant crossbow-like devices that looked as if they shot giant grappling hooks. The Argonauts had studied the weapons and knew they were called ballistas. Several Earthborn pounded on humungous drums that boomed throughout the entire mountains and echoed across the Mediterranean Sea. The drummers pounded their instruments at slow ominous pace that made the Atlas Mountains seem as if it had it's own heart beat. The monsters began to chant in an old language that none of the Argonauts understood.

Some of the Argonauts, who were packed tightly on the upper deck of the Argo II, gasped at sheer size of the Gaea's army. They looked down anxiously at the army of monsters roaring up at them. A few silent prayers were recited to every god they could think of, some gulped nervously, and others rethought why they had even signed up in the first place. Their hearts pounded against their rib cages begging to escape from their chests and the sweat of apprehension rained down their faces.

"And that's only a fourth of their army?" Frank asked in disbelief as he looked down at the armada of ships and the horde of monsters below them.

"They're just the appetizers," Clarisse grunted nonchalantly.

Tyler nodded in agreement, "When do we get to start the killing?"

"I'm with Horace, when do they get to die?" Coach Hedge nodded.

"Easy tiger," said Hazel, patting both Tyler and Hedge on the shoulders.

Annabeth adjusted a strap on Percy's armor. "Are you ready?"

Percy sighed and shrugged, "Ready as I'll every be."

From manning one of the fifty-cal machine guns Leo said to Achilles, "Everything is all set General."

Achilles nodded and climbed up onto the helm where he overlooked all the Argonauts. Each one of them looked up back to him expectantly. He saw loyalty, trust, and dependance in their eyes, but fear was the dominant emotion.

Achilles, at that very moment, realized he would die for any single one of them. In his past life he arrogantly believed that the rest of the soldiers, who fought with him, were cannon fodder and nothing more; but there, aboard the Argo II, he found comradeship in the faces of the Argonauts. This life was very different from the last indeed.

"Argonauts," he hailed to them. "My brothers and sisters of the sword, spear, and bow! I would rather fight beside you than any army of thousands!"

The Argonauts yelled raising their fist into the air and pounded on the deck of the ship with their spears.

"We are fierce! Let them know how fierce we are! Let them-" Achilles said pointing down at the monster gathered on the cliff below them, "Let them understand how menacing and vicious you are with the thrust of our spears, the cut of our swords, and the aim of our bows!"

"AHOO! AHOO!"

"Your enemy will not show you the slightest bit of mercy or compassion, you will not do the same for them!"

"KILL!" Leonidas yelled.

"KILL!" The Argonauts shouted back as they beat their weapons to their shields.

"Down their, in those mountains is immortality, take it!" Achilles yelled. "Show the Gods that Gaea can be defeated! Show Gaea that she will be destroyed!"

"Now, WHO ARE YOU?"

"ARGONAUTS! AHOO! AHOO!"

Achilles smiled proudly as he looked over all the brave face. He jumped down from his perch, gripped his spear, and nodded to Leo. Leo nodded back to him and cocked his machine gun. Leo took one last deep breathe along with his fellow Argonauts who made last minute adjustments to their armor and weapons.

"TO YOUR BATTLE STATIONS!" Leonidas ordered them.

Most of the Hephaestus/Vulcan children manned the cannons aiming at the biggest targets; such as the catapults, warships, and the tanks. The archers had their bows drawn and trained on the monsters. They prayed to Artemis and Apollo that their arrows would fly straight and true. Bellerophon had his Pegasi Riders stand at the ready who would take off in moments notice if an aerial attack was launched at the Argo II.

"Hello ugly," Odysseus murmured as he took aim at a specifically mean looking cyclopes as his first target.

"NO ARGONAUTS DIE TODAY!" Leonidas shouted from a high perch.

"How long is he expecting this battle last exactly?" Travis Stoll asked his younger brother standing by his side.

Connor shrugged, "Maybe he's planning on making it last through the school year. I rather fight a war than go to school any day. Am I right?"

"I would rather die than going back to that place," Travis said.

"Really, then why haven't you killed yourself yet, because you seem to go every year?"

"Cut it out you two," Katie Gardner ordered them.

"Let's make it rain fire!" Leonidas roared from his perch. "Mr. Valdez, start us off!"

The monsters on the cliff below noticed that the Argonauts were preparing to start their bombardment. The Cyclops moved forward with giant shields to create a wall to defend the main army from projectiles, the Dracaena archers took aim with their bows, the gun of the tank zeroed in on it's target, the warships prepared to fire, and the Telekhines readied the catapults.

Leo took another deep breathe. It was the time, it was the moment they had trained for.

He thought of what Coach Hedge would say, "RISE AND SHINE IT'S BUTT WHIPPIN TIME," No wait Coach Hedge was actually there and he did in fact scream it in Leo's ear. Leo shook the thought or words or whatever it was out of his head and refocused his attention. He aimed down the sights of his machine gun, picked the largest and ugliest group of monsters he could makeup; then he screamed with all his might:

"FIRE! FIRE!"

"ALL BATTERIES FIRE, FIRE!" Jake Mason ordered to the rest of the cannon operators while he lit the fuse on his.

"FIRE!" the rest of the Argonauts echoed. The word rang across the Argo II and resonated throughout the sky.

"FIRE!" The Telekhine commander ordered to his fellow monsters at the catapults, the warships, and the archers.

At that precise moment in time everything seemed to slow down. History was about to be changed. Then...the entire area erupted into thunderous noises, screams, shouting, and explosions. Leo's Mark II fifty caliber machine gun roared to life as it launched forty bronze bullets per minuet into the mass of monsters below him. The cannons boomed as they launched greek fire cannon balls packed with imperial gold shrapnel into the army of monsters. Bow strings twanged as the archers released their arrows. Spearmen grunted as they hurled their spears. A large chunk of the monsters exploded instantly into bronze dust as the projectiles impacted with them. Most were blocked by the wall of Cyclops shields and the catapults swung into action flinging fireballs.

The flaming fireballs that were launched by the monsters' catapults merely bounced off the hard hull of the Argo II but some managed to leave a few dents in the ship's hull and caused it shutter. The thousands of arrows soared up toward the Argonauts but either missed completely or bounced harmlessly off their shields. The flaming boulders thrown from the Laistrygonians and the Earthborn were dodged or blocked. Leo outstretched his hand controlling the flame of the fireballs; he stopped them in midair and returned them to their senders.

"Seven, eight, nine, ten..." Odysseus counted as he fired arrow after arrow into the bulk of monsters.

Frank was beside him, firing energized sun arrows from his bow, Oriens. He felt like Zeus launching lightning bolts from the sky. "Hydra arrows!" he called out to his fellow archers.

All one hundred archers selected a Hydra arrow from their quiver, notched it into their bow strings, and fired. The result were devastating. Even if the arrow missed it's mark, the Hydra arrows' tentacles wrapped itself into nearby monsters, dragged catapults off the cliff, and sunk a couple warships

"Whoa!" Will Solace said with awe in response to the pure destruction. "We're definitely doing that again! HYDRA, SONIC, ROCKET, AND FART ARROWS! GIVE 'EM' EVERYTHING YOU GOT!"

"With pleasure," Odysseus said with glee as he knocked in a rocket arrow and let if fly. It exploded into a pack hell hounds and caused them to evaporate into dust.

Frank loaded a rocket arrow into his bow. Since Oriens had an unlimited supply of sun arrows, the idea of loading regular arrows never crossed his mind till that very moment. Frank wondered what the results would be but there was no point in thinking about it when he could do it. He pulled back on his bow string and the sun arrow that materialized seemed to mold together with rocket arrow creating one giant super arrow. His hands vibrated as Oriens hummed from the energy build up. Frank released his grip on the string and the mega arrow zoomed through the air and impacted with the Cyclops shield wall on the cliff below. The explosion instantly vaporized thirty Cyclopses and caused their shield wall to falter. The arrow left a smoky mushroom cloud and where the Cyclops once stood, there was only crater.

Odysseus gave Frank a sidelong glance and managed to whisper, "Beautiful."

Frank nodded as he notched in another rocket arrow. "Round two," he grinned as he took aim at a warship. His smile widened as the ship was blown to Davy Jone's Locker.

"Hey, Hazel!" Frank called after firing a few more arrows.

"What," Hazel said as she held up her shield to block a giant rock that was flung at her.

"Wouldn't you say those monsters are pretty well armed."

"What are you getting at?" Hazel asked curiously.

"What do you think their weapons are made out of?" Frank grinned mischievously while giving her a wink.

Hazel smiled in understanding, "I'll try my best."

She closed her eyes and outstretched her sword hand. There was a rupture in the monster ranks and suddenly their weapons started to float out of their hands knocking them off balance and sending a few dozen off the cliff into the ocean below. A score of monsters exploded into dust as their own weapons impaled them. Hazel's eyes snapped opened and she sighed from lightheadedness.

"I did the best I could," she breathed. "How did I do?"

Frank looked down at the cliff and analyzed the damage she caused. "Not too shabby, not shabby at all."

The machine guns continued to thump and the cannons continued to boom, and the projectiles it launched left craters in the cliff where monsters once stood. Warships continued to sink, catapults were being blasted to smithereens, the tank was destroyed, and monsters continued to explode into dust by the digits. They were getting wiped out and they weren't offering any sort of resistance. They were target practice for the Argonauts. Panic and confusion flooded throughout the monsters' ranks.

* * *

><p>From inside Minos's and Polyphemus's bunker a Dracaena asked, "What to we do My Lords? We are getting slaughtered!"<p>

"Have the warships use their special weapons!" Polyphemus boomed.

"Send the Gryphon and the Venti," Minos snarled.

"Yes, My Lords," the Dracaena slithered away.

"AND DON'T COME BACK TILL THAT SHIP IS BLOWN TO TARTARUS!" Minos barked after her.

* * *

><p>"Things seem to be going very well," the original Jason shouted to Hercules. He almost had to scream to get his voice projected over the yelling and explosions.<p>

He dodged a flying boulder and got out of the way of passing Argonauts who were rushing back and forth around the ship delivering ammo and what not. Jason looked over the railing to see the progress they were making and observed that the monster were getting decimated.

"Things are going very well indeed," Hercules chuckled as he caught a boulder thrown by a Laistrygonian. "You have to do better than that," he shouted as he threw it back and took out a couple of Earthborn in the process.

"I concur," said Theseus joining them at the railing. "However, it's only a matter of time till we run out of arrows and ammunition for the cannons; or maybe they'll launch an aerial assault."

"I forgot, you're the optimistic youngling," Odysseus put in sarcastically after shooting an arrow and grinning at it's results, "and I'm the handsome one."

"I'm afraid you have spoken too soon my dear Theseus," Jason said while pointing to the warships below them who were prepping their awkwardly giant ballistas.

"What in the blazes are they doing?" asked Hercules as he squinted down at the Warships.

Theseus eyes widened in realization. "HIT THE DECK!" he shouted.

Out of nowhere a giant grappling hook inserted itself onto the railing where they once stood. Further down the railing, on both sides of the ship, several other grappling hooks latched themselves into place. There was a vicious grinding noise and the Argo II began to descend rapidly.

"They're reeling us in," Odysseus hissed as he understood the intentions of the warships; which was to launch the grappling hooks onto the Argo II and like a fishing rod, they would pull the ship out of the sky.

"Crap, crap, crap, crap! N-n-n-n-n-NOOOOO!" Leo screamed as he jumped from his machine gun to the ship's controls.

He picked up the Wii-motes and began swinging his arms wildly in windmill formations, whiles slamming on the other controls of the ship, trying to wrestle the Argo II out of the grappling hooks' death grip.

"Its like the Gods damned tractor beam on the Death Star!" he exclaimed in exertion, now fighting with the ship's steering wheel.

A few Argonauts tried slashing at the cables connected to the hooks but they were to thick. Others tried to lift the grappling hooks but they were too deep and heavy. Hercules was the only one who seemed to be able to make any headway with the hooks but even if he removed one, another latched on, taking the previous's place.

Achilles registered what the situation was on and using his tactical brain discovered what counter-measure was needed.

"MR. JACKSON, TAKE CARE OF THOSE WARSHIPS!"

From trying to slash one of the cables with Riptide, Percy looked up to Achilles, and nodded in understanding. He ran to the railing of the ship, dodged a few arrows, regained his balance, and prepared to dive into the ocean.

"Percy, wait!" Annabeth shouted as she tugged on his arm, spun him around, removed her helmet and his, and then pulled him into a passionate kiss that lasted more than a good ten seconds.

"Good luck," she whispered breathlessly and encouragingly onto his lips when they finally broke apart.

Percy gave her a charmingly cocky smile and shrugged, "When do I ever need luck?" He tried to act like he was indifferent to the kiss but he was so dazed by it he forgot to put his helmet back on.

"Jackson, once down on that cliff you must secure a beach head and hold it all by yourself! I repeat, you will be alone!" Achilles explained.

"No, he won't!" Theseus pronounced.

Percy looked surprised when Theseus joined him at the railing.

"Son of Poseidon also! Remember that I told you?" Theseus reminded him.

Percy nodded and clasped Theseus on the shoulder. Theseus returned the favor. Both of their sea green eyes of determination locked and they nodded.

"Do I get a kiss as well?" Theseus grinned.

"Shut up," Percy said shaking his head.

He vaulted over the railing and gave a salute to his fellow Argonauts before he fell out of sight.

Theseus continued to grin at his previous joke and jumped over the railing after his half/quarter/whatever-he-was brother. The two of them rocketed down through the air like missiles toward the ocean below them.

"CANNONS CEASE FIRE!" Achilles ordered the Argonauts. "We have men going down there. ARCHERS GIVE THEM COVERING FIRE! Don't shoot too close to them!"

The cannons ceased fired; they were low on ammunition anyway. The archers slowed their rate of fire and instead of shooting just too shoot, they began firing expertly aimed shots.

"GENERAL!" Perseus yelled from the crows nest.

"NOW WHAT?" Achilles cried exasperated.

"WE HAVE GRYPHONS INCOMING!"

"Which direction? How many?" Achilles questioned.

"Eastbound, I count about fifty and Venti as well, and they're coming in hot!" Perseus answered.

"Bellerophon!" Achilles called.

"Sir," Bellerophon asked.

"You and your Riders are up!"

Bellerophon nodded and turned to the Butch, Reyna, Hazel, and the rest of the Pegasi riders. The Pegasi spread their wings and took off into the air and soared east to intercept the small army of Gryphon and Venti heading their way. Perseus, from the crows nest, activated his Hermes Boots, and took off into the air following the Riders.

"Thalia come on," Jason Grace said to Thalia while flipping his coin and wielding his gladius. He tugged on her arm and led her to the railing.

"Jason, I don't know about this!"

"Flying is easy, you can do it! I believe in you!"

"I can't," she stammered.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm afraid of heights!" Thalia snapped.

"Well, today is about facing your fears! Besides, your instincts will kick in," then he flashed her smile of mischievous intent.

"What? Why are you smiling at me like that?" Thalia said panicked. "Wipe that smile off your face before I do it for you!"

Her response only made his grin grow.

Thalia caught on, "Don't you think about, don't you even dare!"

Too late. Jason pushed her with his arm and shoved her over the railing.

"Screw you!" she managed to scream before she fell. Thalia closed her eyes expecting to fall to her death but then she felt the sensation of being weightless. She opened her eyes to see that she was floating in the air.

"Don't look down," she whispered to herself while taking in quick and short breathes.

Jason hovered next to her. "I don't like to say I told you so, so I'll shout it with my hands cupped over my mouth. I TOLD YOU SO!"

"You're lucky there's a battle going on or I would kill you! You do not understand how pissed I am right now. What if I did fall to my death?"

"I would've caught you," Jason said. "Now let's go before they kill everything without us!"

The two flew in the eastern direction to aid the Riders and Perseus with the task of repelling the aerial assault.

* * *

><p>Percy and Theseus shot through the air like twin meteors. They had their arms and legs locked together which allowed to cut through the air like arrows. They passed by the cliff in a blur and saw the ocean and warships below them. Fifty feet till impact, then ten, then five, and splash down! They landed closely in the center of all the warships with a little and unnoticeable splash.<p>

The monsters on aboard the ships near Percy's and Theseus's landing spot looked curiously to the disturbance in the water where Percy and Theseus hit. All they saw was small little ripples. They shrugged and turned away assuming it was only a couple stray arrows.

Then suddenly the two ripples transformed into a giant whirlpools. It's radius was as large as Charybdis whirlpool. The warships began to drift towards the massive vortex and one by one they were sucked into it never to be seen again. Their cables attached to the grappling hooks snapped and the Argo II was released from it's hold. Then suddenly the giant whirlpool/vortex of death exploded into a giant tsunami sending parts of smashed warships rocketing into the sky and into the cliff above. The warship wreckage acted as shrapnel and cut monsters to shreds. On top of the tsunami stood Theseus and Percy who appeared to be surfing it. Theseus wore his shield on his back and dual wielded his cudgel and sword. Percy had his wristwatch shield opened and Riptide drawn. The tsunami towed over the cliff and crashed down on it like a breaking wave on a beach but just twenty times more ferocious. It engulfed a quarter of the cliff's land mass and swept a coupled hundred monsters to sea. The moment the tsunami broke; Theseus and Percy jumped off the tip of the wave and hit the ground rolling. They rose to their feet swinging and entered combat with the monsters that surrounded them.

Percy ducked under a club swing from a Cyclops, bashed a Dracaena with his shield, and stabbed into a Telekhine. Theseus cut down an Earthborn with his sword and smashed a Hellhound into dust with his cudgel. From there, the two fought wildly as monster after monster lined up to meet them. Percy and Theseus stood back to and called upon the sea, creating a hurricane that acted as a force field around the two. Any monster that tried to enter the hurricane were flung into oblivion or were so disorientated they walked straight into Theseus's and Percy's swords.

After a few minutes of cutting down monsters, Percy turned too Theseus. "They better hurry up and land because I don't know how much longer I can keep this up.

"Aye," Theseus nodded as he decapitated an Empousai and then crushed a dracaena's skull with his cudgel.

The fighting continued, Percy and Theseus hacked, cut, sliced, bashed, twirled, and rolled inside the protection of their mini hurricane. This dragged on for a while longer but was soon interrupted by a blood curling and familiar roar that could even be heard over the high speed winds of the mini hurricane. All the action paused. The monsters stopped fighting as well, backed away from the duo, formed a ring around them, and parted to allow three giant men, hairy men, to enter the ring. They had normal human legs, and human bodies, but where their heads should have been, there were bull heads with massively long horns instead.

"Three Minotaurs?" Percy exclaimed in disbelief.

"Didn't someone say something about duplicating monsters?" Theseus remembered.

"This is going to be fun," Percy said sarcastically.

Theseus nodded.

The Minotaurs on the left and right charged forward. Percy took the left and Theseus the right. Percy rolled out of the way easily, regained his footing, and stabbed at the side of the monster. It roared and exploded into bronze dust. Theseus met his Minotaur head on, swung his cudgel at it's head, causing it to reel back, and while it was stunned Theseus swung down with his sword and cudgel at the same time. The Minotaur exploded.

"Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumbass are out of the picture leaving only this ugly bastard left!" Percy said looking at the final Minotaur.

"This one seems different." Theseus said studying it.

This one was different indeed. He was twice as big as his brothers and his eyes were filled with rage and hate. This one happened to be the original copy, the first Minotaur. He was back to exact revenge on both his past killers.

"The bigger they are," Percy began.

"The harder they fall," Theseus finished.

Percy charged first and Theseus followed. They executed the same plan as last time. Percy went left and Theseus right. The Minotaur waited and at the last moment he put down his head, struck Percy's with his horns, and swatted his fist at Theseus. Percy managed to block the horns with his shield creating two large dents in it's surface and Percy's arm to go numb. Theseus wasn't so lucky and he was sent flying backwards. The Minotaur advanced on Percy, picked him up with both hands are the boy's throat, and began to strangle him. Percy hacked at the Minotaur's arms with Riptide but he only caused it to scream in rage and it squeezed harder. Theseus, scrambling to his feet and spitting the blood from his mouth, charged forward at the Minotaur who had it's back turned to him. Theseus hit at it's ribs with his cudgel causing it to sink to his knees and also dropping Percy. The Minotaur looked up to the sky and roared in rage. With it's mouth open, Theseus and Percy stabbed down it's throat with their swords. The Minotaur screamed for a few seconds but his bellowing was muffled due to the two swords in his mouth. Finally it exploded into bronze dust.

Percy and Theseus looked up each other with smiles but their celebration was short lived. The ring of monsters around them went back on the attack. The two sighed, and restarted their hurricane. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, in the skies there was another fight happening. The Gryphons and Venti were doing battle with the Bellerophon, the Riders, the Grace Siblings, and Perseus.<p>

Bellerophon zigzagged through the air as he mounted Pegasus. He fired arrows rapidly from his bow as he zoomed past Gryphons and Venti. Then he slung it over his shoulder, drew his spear, and impaled it into three Gryphons at once. The other Riders followed their leader's example and slashed left and right with their swords, shot with their bows, stabbed with their lances and javelins, and thrust with their spears. Jason Grace used his wind and lightning abilities to zap Venti out of the air or sent them hurtling across the sky. Thalia had his back and shot at any Gryphon with her bow that tried to get at him. Perseus did his usual disappearing act as he cut way through Gryphon and Venti with his Adamantine sword and bashed with his Silver Shield.

Soon they had the Gryphon on Venti on the run.

* * *

><p>"HOWS IS THAT POSSIBLE?" Minos wrathfully screamed at the Telekhine who cowered in fear.<p>

"We did not prepare for the two Sons of Poseidon or the fact that the Pegasi Riders are very good My Lord," the Telekhine said hiding behind his flippers.

"NO!" Polyphemus roared as he smashed the Telekhine with his fist.

"You," Minos barked as he pointed at another Telekhine. "You are the new commander!"

"Yes, my lord," the Telekhine whimpered.

"RELEASE THE DRAGON! I WANT THOSE PEGASI DEAD! I WANT THOSE SONS OF POSEIDON DEAD! I WANT THAT WARSHIP DEAD! DEAD, YOU HEAR ME? DEAD, DEAD, DEAD!"

"Yes, My Lord," the Telekhine whimpered again as it scurried out of the bunker.

* * *

><p>"Theseus and Percy have done it! We're free!" The Argonauts cheered as the cords attached to the grappling hooks snapped.<p>

"Whoa, look at em go!" Frank said as he watched Percy and Theseus cut down monster after monster.

"No fair," pouted Clarisse. "There going to kill them all before we even get there."

"Yeah," Tyler agreed.

"Fine," Achilles said. "Leonidas, take the flying chariot, have La Rue and Horace accompany you, fly it down to that cliff, and aid our beach party."

"Yes, sir," Leonidas saluted. "You two with me!" he ordered Tyler and Clarisse. Then the the three of them raced to the lower deck to take the flying chariot to the cliff below.

"Hey, it looks as if the Gryphon and Venti attack has been turned away." Piper said as she looked to the East to see the Riders returning back to the ship.

"All right, Percy and Theseus are going to need us down there. Mr. Valdez, if you would be so kind and take us down," ordered Achilles with a hint of a smile on his face.

"Yes, sir!" Leo said with a smile of his own.

"Wait, what the Hades?" Annabeth asked quizzically as she scrunched her eyes to make out what that floating speck was flying up to them. The longer time lapsed the bigger the speck grew.

"What?" Piper asked confused while joining Annabeth at the railing. She tried to look at what Annabeth was looking at.

"No!" Annabeth said with her eyes widening, "It can't be?"

"What?" Piper asked again, now worried.

"DRAGON!" Annabeth screamed.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	18. Blitzkrieg: Part Two

Bellerophon didn't make out what Annabeth was screaming until it was already too late. He barley had enough time to urge Pegasus into barrel-rolling out of the way of the gigantic column of fire that was launched toward him. A few of the Riders weren't as luck as he was, however. Four of them were incinerated instantly and another five were set on fire and their screams filled the sky as toppled to the earth below.

The dragon's roar was as loud as a hundred fog horns put together. It caused Bellerophon to cover his ears with his hands. Every time it flapped it's wings, it sounded like the Earth had it's own heart beat. This dragon was the biggest dragon that Bellerophon had ever seen and he had seen a couple. This dragon was twice the size of Peleus, the dragon who guarded the Golden Fleece at Camp Half-Blood. He heard stories about Festus the dragon, who weighed fifty tons, but this dragon seemed a much heavier than that. It had a wing span of at least sixty-five feet, dozens of razor sharp teeth in it's mouth like a shark, a mix of black and red scales, and gleaming gold eyes of hate. The thing had huge spikes jutting out of it's spine and the scales that were scarred and bruised, as if someone had beaten it and hurt it intentionally. The thought came to Bellerophon, this dragon was in fact injured on purpose. It was abused and tortured like a rodeo bull or pit fighting dogs, making them even more violent and belligerent. This dragon was furious and there was no doubt about it. It needed to take it's anger out on something and it's scapegoat was the Riders.

"What are you waiting for?" Bellerophon asked looking to his Riders expectantly. "Shoot it!" he ordered as he knocked an arrow into his bow string and fired. "Keep it away from the ship!"

The initial shock passed over the Riders and the archers in the group fired their arrows hoping to stop the beast but their projectiles merely bounced harmlessly off the dragon's diamond hard scales. Javelins ad spears were thrown but the over-sized reptile just kept on coming. Thalia and Jason tried blasting it with lightning but that didn't even leave a dent.

"Aim for it's eyes, aim for it's eyes!" Bellerophon shouted. "SCATTER!"

Before the dragon was fully on them, the Riders dispersed and zig-zagged in different directions. They zoomed around it trying to get a clear shot at it's eyes. It was too fast though. It twirled and looped around the Riders. It would breathe fire to keep them at bay and sometimes it would score a hit and ignite the flammable tail hairs of a Pegasus. Butch tried to take the dragon from behind but it's tail swatted him away. Reyna tried going for it's underbelly with her sword but the dragons claws pushed her back. They couldn't return back to the ship because then they would lead the dragon right to it. They couldn't kill it because it was too strong and too fast.

In the words of Grover Underwood, "They're screwed."

"Shoot it with the cannons!" Octavian suggested.

"No, you'll hit Jason," Piper shrieked, "and the others!" she added quickly.

"Mrs. McLean is right," Achilles coincided.

"We have to do something!" an Argonaut shouted out.

Frank saw the dragon nearly hit Hazel, who was riding Black Jack, with a column of fire. It made his heart rate quicken and caused his stomach to do a backflip.

"I have an idea," said Frank.

Without really thing ahead he jumped over the railing and then turned into an eagle. He bravely but dumbly he flew towards the dragon.

Frank swerved through the Riders, dodged a fire ball from the dragons mouth, flew high above the dragon and then turned back into a human. Quickly, before gravity pulled him down, Frank knocked a rocket arrow into Oriens, he took aim, drew back on the string, and let the mega arrow fly. The arrow struck the dragon square in the back and it exploded, causing the mushroom cloud effect. Before Frank fell too low he transformed back into an eagle. He looked through the smoke hopefully but when it cleared his heart sunk. No dice, the arrow only made the dragon grunt in pain and then scream in rage. The only damaged that seemed to be done was a small bruise on it's back.

"No way," Frank said but it came out as a screech due to the fact he was an eagle.

The dragon turned to look at Frank, the one who shot him in the back, hate filled it's golden eyes. Then it flew directly at him. Frank realized that he was now the primary target. He let out a panicked shriek befogging turning and flying away. His mind buzzed as he zoomed around the clouds while dodging columns of fire. He couldn't keep this up all day but if stopped then the dragon would get him.

_There must be a way to kill this thing, he thought_. Frank searched his mind for answers which resinated with the stories that his mother and grandmother used to tell him about his ancestors. Then it hit him, '_He was the greatest dragon of all...You can be anything Frank...literal truth,' _his Grandmother said in his mind.

Frank concentrated about the nights after Grunt Training. He spent everyday of that week with Hazel, next to Thalia's Tree, where the Golden Fleece hung; but not just the Golden Fleece was there, but so was it's protector. Frank opened his eyes and felt his body shift. He grew a tail, his eagle wings expanded twenty times larger, his talons extended and practically transformed into razor sharp blades, his beak turned into a reptilian snout, and his feathers morphed into iron-hard scales.

Frank had turned into a mirror image of Peleus, the dragon! After letting out a roar of triumph, Frank turned to face the giant dragon that was chasing him. The hateful eyes of the dragon widened in surprise at what Frank had become. It's surprise was quickly washed over with rage. It opened its mouth and set a column of fire at Frank but it was intercepted with Frank's very own column of fire. The fire columns pushed against each other, fighting for dominance. Frank knew he couldn't win this battle. The other dragon was way more experienced and powerful in the art of breathing fire. Frank closed his mouth, rolled out of the way, and flew straight at his opponent. The two collided and began snapping at each other with their jaws. Their necks tangled and their claws scratched at each other. Frank opened his mouth again and doused his dragon opponent with fire. It screamed in pain and tried to give Frank a taste of his own medicine. Frank was too quick however and wriggled free from the entanglement. He rolled out of the way of more fire breath, swooped down, then up, and closed his jaws around the other dragon's throat. The huge red and black dragon looked toward the heavens and screamed in agony as Frank bit down harder and harder every time it tried to wriggle free.

"This our chance," yelled Bellerophon. "NOW, ATTACK, ATTACK!"

The Riders flew in and began to pour arrows, spears, and javelins into the dragon's mouth which was wide open. Jason hovered as he flipped his gladius causing it to morph into it's javelin counter-part. He pointed it's tip at the humungous dragon's open maw, summoned all the strength he could muster from his father's kingdom, and sent the biggest lightning bolt down onto the tip of his javelin. Jason's arm vibrated as the lightning bolt arced down the shaft of the javelin and hurled it's self from the tip of the weapon. The lightning bolt soared straight at the dragon's mouth and down it's gullet. The electric shock flooded through the dragons veins and after a few moments of violent convulsions it exploded into a million little bits of dragon nuggets.

In exhaustion, Frank slowly turned back into a human and fell down to the Earth. Bellerophon and Hazel glided under him and caught him gently.

From Hazel's lap, Frank looked up said, "I did the best I could, how did I do?"

She pecked him on the forehead with her lips. "Not too shabby, not shabby at all my dragon."

Back at the Argo II a mob swarmed Frank and began to pat him on the back, gave him have fives, and congratulated him.

"That was amazing," they would say, or "That was awesome," or "Can I get your autograph?"

"Frank, we should change you nickname from 'Babyface' to 'Dragonface,'" Leo suggested.

"That's pretty badass," Jason agreed.

"Hey, aren't we forgetting something?" Frank asked incredulously.

Achilles answered for everyone: "Mr. Valdez, takes us down to the cliff. I assume Percy Jackson, Theseus, Clarisse La Rue, Tyler Horace, and Leonidas will need our help."

* * *

><p>"Holy crap, have they forgotten us?" Percy asked as he cut down another dracaena, "Because I'm pretty sure they have and my arm is getting sore," he whined as he used a wave from the ocean to sweep a squad of cyclopses to sea.<p>

"Stop complaining, save your breathe, use it for killing," Theseus recommended while he slid like a baseball player under a line of Earthborn, hitting every single one in the groin with his cudgel.

"I hope they never get here because I'm having way too much fun," Clarisse cackled as she thrust her electric spear, Maimer, through five Empousai.

"Aye," Leonidas agreed after leveling an Earthborn with a shield bash and bending down to cut it's throat with his sword.

Tyler continued his stony silence as he hacked away with his trench knife.

Slowly the monsters began to back away deeper and deeper into the mountains. There were only about a hundred left to due the barrage of cannon balls, machine gun fire, arrow volleys, a tsunami, and now these five Argonauts cutting them to pieces.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" A giant cyclops suddenly shouted from behind the monster ranks.

"No way, it's that blind Geezer from that one quest we had in the Sea of Monster, remember Jackson?" Clarisse exclaimed.

"WHO SAID THAT? WHERE ARE YOU?" Polyphemus roared.

"They're over there," Minos snarled accompanied by another two-thousand monsters. "I'm going to end you Theseus!"

Minos and Polyphemus decided to peak out of their safe little cave and they had even brought reinforcements with them.

"You may have gotten this far, you may have killed my pets, you may have destroyed my dragon-" Minos began.

"You had a dragon?" Percy asked in disbelief while searching the sky in amazement.

"Silence," Minos barked, "your time ends now."

"YOU DIE NOW HALF-BLOOD, WE MONSTERS EAT WELL TONIGHT!" Polyphemus cackled.

"Not if we anything too say about it!" called Odysseus from the Argo II which seemed to materialize from the clouds and land directly behind Theseus, Percy, Leonidas, Tyler, and Clarisse.

The giant warship loomed threateningly behind the five Argonauts. All the guns were trained on the Minos and his army of monsters. The archers stood at the ready and the Riders hovered in the air above them.

"Do I hear Nobody?" Polyphemus asked. "I'LL KILL YOU!" He roared as he picked up a giant boulder and prepared to throw it.

"Shut up," Odysseus bleated as he notched an arrow into his bow and shot it at Polyphemus.

The arrow whistled as it streaked through the air. It hit Polyphemus straight into his single eye. Polyphemus screamed, sunk to his knees while cupping his hands to his face, and then exploded. The boulder he held, fell from his hands, and dropped onto a pack of Hellhounds.

"How dare you," Minos roared. "Prepare to attack," he ordered his monsters.

"Mr. Valdez, blow these putrid insects to Tartarus please!" Achilles ordered him.

"With pleasure," Leo grinned as he pressed the 'B' button on his Wii-mote.

"LIGHT EM BOYS!"

The cannons boomed to life and sent rounds into the monsters' ranks while the archers fired volley after volley. After a few seconds of explosions, the cannon fire ceased and the archers fired their last arrows. When the smoke cleared all that was left of the monster army was the crumpled and defeated body of Minos. He laid there coughing, his clothes covered in dust and tattered, and the blood flowed freely from various wounds.

Theseus slowly approached him, grabbed the evil king by his hair, and lifted his head to the sky.

"King Minos, you will die like your sacred Minotaur!" Theseus growled with no remorse.

"Please, please, I beg you! N-n-n-no! NOOOOOOOOO!" Minos screamed.

"For Ariadne," Theseus whispered menacingly into his ear.

With Minos's mouth wide open, Theseus shoved his sword down the evil king's throat. Everyone aboard the Argo II, even Tyler, grimaced at the gruesome sight they were witnessing. After the dirty deed was finished; Theseus picked up the limp body and threw it off cliff edge. He watched the corpse hit every rock on the way down before it splashed into the ocean.

"Prepare to unload!" Achilles ordered the Argonauts after recovering from the initial shock of Theseus's brutality.

"Check you weapons, armor and ammo. We will enter the ravine ahead of us. That will be the new Thermopylae Pass. That is where we will make our stand! There, we will thin out their numbers and then we will assault Death's Doors!"

"This is a good start," Hercules smiled. "Seven-thousand monsters gone and only thirteen-thousand left!"

"FALL OUT!" Leonidas ordered.

The Argonauts unloaded, gathered their weapons, resupplied their arrows, and marched forward through the ravine. The day had only begun. This was going to be a long one.

* * *

><p>"NO!" The female Giant, Pallas, screamed. "Minos and Polyphemus, those incompetent fools!"<p>

"Don't worry, My Lady," Hector reassured her. "That was only the beginning. We will wipe out these so called new Argonauts soon enough."

"No, I want you to attack now!" Pallas roared.

"Be patient, let Achilles bask in his victory. Let him become overconfident. He will eventually make mistakes and that, My Lady, is when we will crush him. Besides, only a few thousand of our army can fit on that cliff at one time, they would be destroyed in a matter of hours. We will destroy them when they advance on Death's Door. There, they will be in the open, we will surround them, and finish them. Do not fret though, we will give them a few surprises along the way. Eventually our extra forces from the Underworld will arrive and we will outnumber them even more. My Lady, everything is going as planned!"

"Your plan cost me over a quarter of our forces!"

"As I said, be patient. Achilles will die soon enough!"

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	19. Corridor of Death

Hazel raced through the large ravine that the Argonauts appropriately named New Thermopylae. She rode atop her horse, Arion. Her heart thumped in her chest and her lungs gasped for air and she wasn't even the one doing any of the running. Hazel wished she could push Arion to his full speed giving them the ability to break the sound barrier but she couldn't. There was a mission she had to accomplish.

She chanced a look backward and almost lost her head in the process when a javelin missed it by inches. At least she knew that monsters were still following her, all five-thousand of them. Even though things were going according to plan it didn't prevent Hazel from hating it. She hated it even more when an arrow zipped by her ear causing her to almost jump out of her saddle.

Hazel's job entitled her to be the bait. She would ride Arion to the horde of monsters, attack them, get them to follow her, and lead them to end of the New Thermopylae where the rest of Argonauts laid in wait. Hazel didn't want the job. It was forced on her.

She was voted the lucky winner because she was the only one who could ride Arion, the fastest horse they had. She protested and asked why couldn't one of the Pegasus Riders do it. That idea was vetoed when Annabeth pointed out that the monster wouldn't follow a flying Pegasus but they would follow a horse. Hazel tried to suggest Frank to turn into a cheetah or something but Frank told her that his dragon formed wiped out all of his "transforming" energy. He could barley function as a human as it was. In the end Hazel lost the argument. She had to swallow her fear and do the job she was given. Her friends depended on it.

Hazel sighed in relief when she finally saw the Festus Head shields locked into a wall at the end of the ravine. She had made it in one piece. The sensation of safety made her urge Arion into a higher gear so she could get behind friendly lines as soon as possible.

"They're coming," she called to the shield wall that parted allowing her to get through. "They're pretty pissed off," she added, "and hungry."

She raced through the ranks of Argonauts who cheered her on as she passed.

"Thank the Gods," she breathed when she finally came to a stop at the very back ranks.

"How far are they out and how many?" Achilles asked her.

"They were about a few hundred yards last time I looked back. There's about five to seven-thousand of them. I didn't have any time to count but I took out a couple of them before I took off." Hazel informed him.

"Good work Levesque,"Achilles said patting her on the shoulder. He then turned to Leonidas and nodded. Leonidas nodded back in response.

"ARGONAUTS!" Leonidas screamed as he ran through the ranks of Argonauts. He found his place in the very first and front line. Achilles joined him at his side.

"PREPARE FOR BATTLE!"

The Argonauts pounded their shields with their weapons as they hunched down into Phalanx formation. The Argonauts in the front locked their shields even tighter and leveled their spears with the ground; the razor sharp tips jutting in front of them. Their formation resembled a giant pin-cushion. Each line after the other pushed their shields against hose in front of them acting as a support or foundation. They're was eighty Argonauts standing shoulder to shoulder across the ravine. It was the maximum number they could squeeze into the tight space without allowing any gabs in the wall.

The Argonauts looked down the ravine expectantly waiting for their enemy to come in sight…And come in sight they did. There was thousands of them. A line of angry faced centaurs lead the way galloping with their spears tips directed at the line of Argonauts. Behind them ran another line of cyclops and behind them was a mix of Empousai, Laistrygonian Giants, Scythian Dracaena, Telekhines, and Earthborn.

"A little over five-thousand in total!" Bellerophon counted while mounted on Pegasus from the top of the ravine.

A few Argonauts gulped at the sheer size of their numbers. Back on the Battle of the Cliff, they were able to use cannons and bows to rain projectiles from the safety of the Argo II which floated high in the sky. At New Thermopylae, they did not have that luxury. The Ravine was too small for the Argo II to fit and it couldn't fly over the ravine because the angle would be too awkward for the cannons to fire properly. Leo Valdez also said something about damages to the ship that needed to be repaired before it could fly again. The Argo II remained useless on the cliff bordering the ocean with a good number of Hephaestus/Vulcan children who were working on the repairs. The fight was now down to skill and the training of the Argonauts.

"THIS IS WHERE WE FIGHT AND THEY DIE!" Leonidas screamed from the front line. The front line was built of Achilles, Leonidas, all forty of the Spartans, Clarisse, and a score of Ares/Mars children.

From next to Leonidas, Achilles said to the Argonauts, "Their numbers mean nothing in this small corridor of death!"

"AHOO! AHOO!" The Argonauts chanted as the pounded on their shields once more. There was something about the sound of metal on metal that fueled them with the confidence and energy they needed.

The monster continued to charge forward. They approached closer and closer to the phalanx with every stride. The Argonauts could now here the grunting and the huffing of the monsters coming for them. The sound of their heavy footsteps echoed through the ravine as they trampled over it's fauna and flora.

"HOLD!" Leonidas screamed as the army of monsters got near and nearer. "HOLD!"

The monster were two-hundred yards away, then one-hundred-fifty, and then one-hundred. The Argonauts could see the centaurs in the front licking their lips and the steam coming from their hot breathe. Time seemed to slow down in those short seconds. The monsters charged in slow-motion. The Argonauts could here the pounding of their hearts as it beat in time with the stomping of the approaching monsters.

"PERSEUS, NOW!" Achilles yelled. "NOW, NOW!"

From outside of the Ravine emerged Perseus accompanied by a score of Argonauts. They were located on either side of the ravine. They pushed boulders down the slopes on the unsuspecting monsters which exploded when the heavy rocks collided into them. Perseus's Argonauts then proceeded into throwing javelins and spears into the mass of bodies; they even used a couple cannons that they had borrowed from the Argo II. The first five ranks of monster exploded into dust. When Perseus's troops were out of boulders and ammunition they jumped down into the army of monsters and entered into close quarters combat. They hacked away with their swords and clubs. Perseus was like a circular saw as he whirled through the monster ranks with his adamantine sword. Monsters burst into dust by the tens. Before the monsters could retaliate or even put together what was happening, Perseus pulled back his soldiers and they ran behind the safety of Argonauts' phalanx.

"They're clear!" shouted Achilles when every one of Perseus troops were safely behind the shield wall. "ARCHERS, FIRE!"

The archers behind the Argonauts ranks sent a volley of sonic and rocket arrows soaring into the sky. They streaked up over the Argonauts phalanx and exploded into the monsters' ranks. The archers fired volley after of volley till Odysseus ordered them to stop in order to conserve ammunition.

"Enough of this cloak and dagger, this coward's way of fighting, let them come!" Leonidas barked. "NO MERCY, NO SURRENDER!"

"AHOO! AHOO!"

After the smoke cleared and the dust settled; the monsters regained their composure and reorganized their ranks. They had lost over a thousand of their number in Perseus's ambush alone. They charged forward again but with half the speed and half the strength as the previous time. They had lost all the momentum of their prior charge but they managed to charge forward nonetheless. They were furious from the surprise attack and how many numbers they had lost. They roared and shrieked as they closed the distance between the two groups. They collided with the shield wall and the ravine erupted with a racket. Screaming, shouting, yelling, banging, thumping, and shrieking filled the air. Dust was kicked up causing monsters and Argonauts to choke and cough. A few monsters exploded on impact with the firm shield wall. Some were impaled by spears. The two sides pushed against each other fighting for dominance. The Argonauts' front line dug in their heels, dropped their shoulders, put all their weight behind their shields, and pushed with all their might. Their fellow Argonauts behind them pushed on their backs supporting them and aided in the pushing. The Argonauts grunted while the monsters roared, screeched, and shrieked in protest. More monsters exploded due to being squished to death between the shield wall and their fellow monster pushing behind them.

"PUSH!" Achilles ordered.

"GIVE THEM AN INCH, TAKE A MILE!" Leonidas shouted over the fray.

A Hellhound managed to squeeze it's head through the shield wall. It tried to snap at Clarisse's throat but she drew her sword and stabbed it in it's open maw. It yelped as it exploded into dust. The spartans stabbed through the small chinks in the shield wall with their spears. More monsters exploded.

"PUSH!" Achilles screamed one more time.

There was a shift in the Argonauts lines. They dug in their heels deeper into the gravel. They used all the strength in their leg muscles and they lunged forward. The front line of the monsters were pushed back several meters by the sheer strength and uniformity of the shove. Before the monsters could recover the ground they had lost, the Argonauts stepped forward and occupied the empty space. The monsters charged forward again but were once again stopped. The shield wall was impenetrable. The monster were again pushed back. They charged forward once more. This time, instead of being halted by shields, they were impaled with a line of eighty stabbing spears. The whole front line of the monsters were depleted. Before they could even think about charging forward again the first few ranks of Argonauts threw their spears into the herd of monsters causing more monsters to explode and their overall force to be pushed back another several meters.

"BREAK!" Leonidas commanded.

The first line of the Argonauts threw the last of their spears, drew their swords, and charged froward. From behind them jumped Hercules who joined the offensive. He hit the ground rolling and came up to his feet swinging his club like a madman. He took out five monsters with one stroke. He looked magnificent in his Nemean Lion armor as he brandished his massive club. With each swing he took out five monsters or more at a time. He picked up a cyclops and threw it clear across the ravine where it crashed into a squad of dracaena. Behind Hercules came his fellow Argonauts who cut and hacked with their xiphos and gladius, or thrusted with their spears. Hannibal the elephant crashed his way through the phalanx and stomped on every monster in his path. Frank Zhang rode on top of him who fired sun arrows with his bow. Mrs. O'Leary bounded after them with Percy on her back. She snapped monsters to dust with her jaws as Percy chopped away with his sword. Hazel bursted through as she rode Arion, stabbing with her Spatha.

"NO RETREAT!" Achilles roared as he stabbed through a Laistroygian with his spear.

"AHOO!"

"NO SURRENDER!" Hercules boomed while he swung his club through a squadron of dracaena.

"AHOO!"

"NO PRISONERS!" Leonidas howled as he chopped left and right with his short sword.

"AHOO!"

The fighting continued on as the monsters were pushed further and further back through the ravine. Every time the Argonauts seemed to tire or showed the slightest bit of weakness, the front ranks would fall back and would be replaced with the ones behind them. The action was similar to line changes in football, hockey, or any other type of mortal sporting event. When the players began to tire they would be substituted. It was a tactic that Gaea's army did not account for.

The monster couldn't even take advantage of the line-changes because they were kept pinned down by the Argonaut archers who would rain arrows down on them every time they tried pursue the retreating Argonauts. When the monsters tried to return fire their arrows would merely bounce off the Argonauts shields and armor, or would be intercepted by gusting winds created by Jason and Thalia Grace. Hazel would also raise her hand in the air and use her power over precious metals to send those arrows flying back at those who fired them.

Although the Argonauts were always being replaced with fresh faces; the monsters' force were an endless wave. Every time a monster exploded into dust or dissolved into to liquid, they would be replaced by five more. The fight was going to be a long one.

It was Jason Grace's turn at front line as stepped by his fellow, retreating Argonauts. He had a Roman shield or Scutum in one arm and held his golden gladius in the other. A dracaena stepped forward but was bashed backward with his shield and then decapitated with his sword. A cyclops came from behind him but was stopped in it's tracks by a bronze dagger. The cyclops exploded to reveal Piper standing behind it. Jason thought she looked stunning with the dirt that streaked her cheek, her armor gleaming, a shield on one arm, and her knife brandished on the other. Their eyes met and Jason smiled at her. She smiled back sweetly, despite the battle happening around them. Jason's heart did a full three-sixty. He quickly shook his head and returned his thoughts back to the battle. He zapped an Earthborn with a bolt of lighting that tried to grab her. The two met eyes again and then turned to the thousands of monsters threatened them. They rushed forward and together the two fought like gods. Jason whirled with his Sword and Piper slashed with her knife. Their fellow Argonauts where right behind them.

The duo was joined by Percy, Leo, Frank, Hazel, Annabeth, Thalia, Reyna, Tyler, and the other seventy Argonauts that made up their line. The group worked their way through barking Hellhounds, flopping Telekhine, galloping centaur, and roaring Laistroygian. They ducked under axe blades, side stepped spear thrust, rolled under club swings, jumped out of the way of thrown nets, deflected arrows, and blocked sword strokes. Percy and Jason sliced with their swords, Annabeth and Piper stabbed with their knives, Leo smashed with his hammer, Reyna and Thalia skewered with their spears, Hazel slew monsters with her spatha on top of Arion, and Frank dropped monster left and right with glowing sun arrows. The five days of Grunt training had paid off ten fold.

Tyler's memory/training/instinct kicked in. He held his trench knife in reverse grip as he dodge out of the way of an overhead axe swing from a gigantic cyclops. The axe blade struck the dirt with a thud and buried itself their. As the cyclops tried to pry the axe from the ground; Tyler ran up the shaft of the weapon and up the cyclops's arms. He vaulted off the monster's shoulder and on to it's neck. From there, Tyler bashed it in the forehead with the skullcrusher and stabbed downward into it's neck with the blade. The cyclops's hand went up to it's throat as it fell backwards and slowly dissolved into dust. Tyler rode the falling cyclops the whole way down. The cyclops landed on it's back into twenty monsters and fully burst into dust causing those monsters to burst as well. Tyler landed on one knee with his hair hanging over his face.

From that position he pounced into a line of dracaena. He bashed the first one in the head the skull crusher of his knife and while it hunched in pain, Tyler slit it's throat with the blade. He spun behind another dracaena and stabbed it in the back, he flipped around and punched another with the brass knuckles; and then with his other hand he grabbed it's spear and stabbed it with it's own spear. He used the stolen spear to push through another five monsters which exploded into dust. He then hefted it and threw it into a charging Laistroygian. Any monster that got by him was intercepted by the Argonauts behind him. After cutting his way through another ten centaur, Tyler turned to his, 'friends,' and gave them a wicked smile. Leo gave him a thumbs up after crushing a Hell Hound to death with his hammer.

Piper smiled, however it transformed into a look of horror.

"TYLER!" she screamed. "LOOK OUT!"

From out of nowhere an Earthborn grabbed Tyler from behind and flung him across the Ravine deep behind enemy lines. He crashed into a few monsters who screeched in protest. Tyler stood to his feet to find that he was surrounded on all sides and his allies were nowhere in sight. They were at least a couple thousand monsters behind him which they would have to fight through to reach him. It would be a while before they could join up with him again. Tyler was on his own for the time being and he smiled at the thought. The monsters formed a ring around him but the smile he wore on his face made them hesitate before they attacked. Tyler's smiled widened as raised his hands in a gesture that said, '_bring it.'_

The monsters realized they outnumbered him a thousand to one. Their hesitation faded as they rushed him. Tyler easily ducked under their swords and spears as he counterattacked by slicing and dicing with his knife at their feet. He escaped from the mass of bodies that sought to kill him and ran around the ring like he was in a moshpit. He hacked left and right with his knife blade, battered with the pommel skull crusher, and thwacked with the brass knuckles. The knife's three-weapon combination made the ultimate fusion of chaos. Tyler was unstoppable. More monsters rushed him and more monster fell.

"This is for Julia!" he snarled as he downed a cyclops.

"That is for Julia!" he grunted as he put down an earthborn.

"And that...that was for me!" he shouted as he dismembered a couple of Laistroygians.

Several monsters ran right past him thinking that they were on the same side. He looked like a monster himself; the way he growled as he fought, his shaggy hair rippling in his fury. He wore no dragon armor like the rest of the Argonauts but instead only jeans and his USMC t-shirt. Dirt, blood, and monster dust smeared his face and arms. He was covered in small scratches from head to toe which were bleeding and his clothes were riddled with holes, rips, and tears.

"I AM TYLER HORACE!" he howled. "THE SON OF ERIS! KNOW ME, LOOK UPON THIS FACE, FOR I BRING CHAOS AND DEATH!"

After several minutes of trying to overwhelm Tyler the Monsters slowly backed away. They could smell the chaos flowing through his blood stream and they saw the rage in accumulate in his pupils.

"Come on!" Tyler goaded the monsters who drew away from him. "I can take on any of on, one-on-one, or maybe all at once!"

The monsters made no reply and only held up their weapons in defense.

"How about me," said a scarred muscular man. His scars covered his muscular arms that were brandishing a very large sword. He was backed by an old man in a golden chariot.

Tyler smirked as he flipped his knife in his hands experimentally. From out of the sky landed Jason Grace next to him. The Son of Zeus's landing caused dust to be thrown into the air. The ring of monsters backed up even more creating more space in the ring.

"GRACE!" The old and muscular man sneered at the same time.

"Midas," Jason nodded to the old king. "Lit," he said to the muscular one.

The formalities were forgotten when Lit charged forward with his sword and Midas jumped out of the chariot to follow his son. Jason dodged Lit and allowed Tyler to take him on. Midas grabbed for Jason with his hands but Jason snatched the old man's wrists first. The two wrestled for dominance. Jason tried to press his blade against Midas's throat and Midas tried to press one of his fingers on Jason's skin. Just one touch was all he need and the old man was stronger than he looked. Jason noticed Tyler in the corner of his eye who was avoiding Lit's whirling sword. Tyler threw a front kick in Lit's chest which made him reel backwards toward the entangled Jason and Midas. Jason saw the action and shoved Midas into Lit. Midas tried to prevent the collision by throwing his hands in front of him. His hands made contact with Lit's skin. Lit screamed in frustration and fear as gold etched up his skin. Midas stumbled clumsily to the ground.

"NOT AGAIN!" Lit screamed as gold slowly climbed up his body which soon fully encased him as a golden statue.

Tyler smirked as he ran forward and kicked Lit's golden body, tipping it over; causing it to land on top Midas, pinning the king due to the weight. Midas tried to push his son off of him but the statue was too heavy. Jason tossed his gladius in the air, flipping it, and catching it as a javelin.

"WAIT," Midas screamed desperately. "If you let me live I'll tell you all of Gaea's secrets."

Jason shook his head without remorse.

Tyler spat, "Coward!"

"Please, NO!" Midas screamed. "Forgive me! I was just working for the highest bidder! I can lend the gods my skills! NO!"

Jason directed the tip of his javelin at Lit and sent a lightning bolt at his golden frame. The electricity transferred from Lit into Midas, gold being an excellent conductor. Midas flopped violently on the rocky ground as he shrieked in pain. Slowly his body stopped shaking, there was a strange sizzling sound in the air, there was the smell of burnt flesh, and smoke trickled from Midas's charred clothing. King Midas laid dead under his son's golden statue.

Tyler and Jason high-fived at the results.

"What about golden boy?" Tyler asked pointing at the gold stature of Lityerses.

Tyler didn't have to wait for an answer because Hazel, on top of Arion, burst through the ring of monsters. She held out her hand to the gold statue and closed it into a fist. The statue of Lit exploded into a million pieces.

"Reaper of Men," scoffed Jason. "Pfft!"

The ring dissipated as the monsters slowly backed away from the trio. From behind Tyler, Jason, and Hazel monsters exploded into dust by the hundreds. The rest of the Argonauts had arrived. The trio melted into their ranks. The Argonauts continued to push the monsters further and further back through the ravine. They were approaching the end. The monsters tried to charge forward time and time again but every occasion they were stuffed under shield bashes, swords, and spears. More and more monsters exploded.

The monsters in back yelled, "FORWARD!"

The monsters in front yelled, "BACK!"

The Argonauts were a well oiled machine. They fought with combined strength of Greek Spartans and Roman Legionnaires. Theseus hacked away with his sword and beat with his cudgel. Perseus whirled with his sword and bashed with his shield. The original Jason decapitated and hacked while deflecting arrows with his Golden Fleece shoulder plate. Hercules hammered with his club, Achilles thrusted with his spear, and Leonidas bashed and hacked with his xiphos and shield combination. Bellerophon and his Riders kept the monsters' archers pinned down with their projectiles. Odysseus picked off monsters by the dozens with well aimed shots.

The King of Ithaca's kill streak was interrupted when he heard a familiar voice.

"ODYSSEUS!" sang a male voice from within the monster army. "WHERE ARE YOU?"

Odysseus knew the voice all too well from a time long ago. "OVER HERE SWEETIE!" he responded, indulging the speaker. "I'VE MISSED YOU!"

A huge, muscled, and heavily armored man broke through the monsters lines. He carried a gigantic rectangular shield on his arm and was covered in sheep skin.

"There you are Odysseus! I've missed you!"

"Ajax," Odysseus spat. "You used to be a coward…but now you're a coward and a traitor! Gaea really gave you a promotion, didn't she?"

"Come here buddy! I just want to give you a hug!" Ajax said with a huge evil grin.

Odysseus respond by notching five arrows into his bow string and fired them all at once, their target, Ajax's face.

Ajax raised his shield and the fiver arrows imbedded themselves in it's wooden surface.

"Now, now Odysseus, is that the way to greet old friends?" Ajax mock chided.

"Suck on cyclops's genitals while you gut molested by Kronos in Tartarus, you ass-butt!" Odysseus said mixing modern and past insults into one beautiful line of slander. "You're nothing more than Gaea's bitch-boy!"

"Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" Ajax responded in sarcastic astonishment.

"Only your's, bitch-boy!"

Ajax's sarcastic smile faded when he charged Odysseus, his shield down, plowing through a couple Argonauts, and some of his own monsters. Odysseus rolled out of the way and fired another arrow at Ajax's unprotected back. Ajax spun around with lightning speed and managed to block the arrow. He charged again. Instead of rolling out of the way again; Odysseus picked up a discarded spear and threw it with all his might at Ajax's gigantic shield. The spear struck it's wooden surface causing Ajax to stumble backwards onto the ground. Odysseus peppered his old friend/enemy with more arrows making him cower under his shield. Odysseus charged forward and ran up Ajax's shield like a ramp. At the shield's peak he jumped off it and landed directly behind the downed Ajax. Odysseus drew a rocket arrow from his quiver and using it like a knife, he stabbed the head of into the eye slit of Ajax's helmet. Ajax screamed in pain as his free hand flew up to arrow lodged in his face. Odysseus jumped to safety as the rocket arrow detonated. He laid with his hands over his head and squished his face to dirt. There was an explosion, screaming, and smoke. Odysseus looked up to where Ajax should have been but instead there was nothing there except a pile of ashes. Odysseus shook his head trying to shake of the ringing in his ears and turned his attention back to the main battle which was still being waged. He picked up his bow and resumed firing arrows at monsters.

After an hour of fighting the Argonauts had finally pushed the monsters all the way back to the opposite end of the ravine.

The remaining monsters skirted away from the line of dragon faced shields that always advanced on them, always advancing, never stopping. Every time they tried to launch a counter attack they were always pushed back by those damned dragon faced shields.

"TO THE LAST SATYR!" shouted Hercules over the shield wall.

"WE FIGHT!" The Argonauts pounded on their shields twice with their weapons. They let the beat ring out. They advanced a few more steps and used the same weapons they beat their shields with on the retreating monsters.

"TO THE LAST AMAZON!" Perseus yelled.

"WE FIGHT!"

"TO THE LAST MORTAL!" Leonidas howled.

"WE FIGHT!"

"TO THE LAST RIDER!" Bellerophon shouted.

"WE FIGHT!"

"TO THE LAST ROMAN!" Odysseus roared.

"WE FIGHT!"

"TO THE LAST GREEK!" Theseus screamed.

"WE FIGHT!"

"TO THE LAST DEMIGOD!" the original Jason bellowed.

"WE FIGHT!"

"TO THE LAST ARGONAUT" Achilles screamed louder than everyone else.

"WE FIGHT, WE FIGHT!" The Argonauts roared causing the very earth to shake.

All seven-hundred plus Argonauts broke the phalanx and charged forward. "AHOO! AHOO!"

The collided with the remaining five-hundred monsters and pushed them out of New Thermopylae Pass. The monsters could only retreat as their numbers were slaughtered by the dozens, but there was no escape because they were pushed to the edge of one of the many cliffs of the Atlas Mountains. There were only fifty monsters left. Those in back fought those in front trying not to be pushed over the edge.

"General Hercules," Achilles called.

"General Achilles," Hercules responded.

"They're trying to retreat," Achilles smiled. "Oblige them!"

"With pleasure," Hercules smiled back in understanding.

He stepped away from the Argonauts shield wall and approached the cowering monsters. A cyclops cowered behind his hands when Hercules raised his club in the air. Instead of crushing the cyclops, Hercules merely tapped it with the end of his club. The cyclops lost it's balance and fell backwards into the monster behind him. The rest lost their balance as well and those in back fell off the cliff dragging the rest with them. They fell to their deaths on the rocks bellow.

"VICTORY!" Leonidas hooted as the last of the monsters tumbled down the cliff and exploded at the bottom. "AHOO! AHOO!"

"AHOO! AHOO!"

"Fourteen-thousand gone and only six-thousand left!" Perseus celebrated.

"AHOO! AHOO!"

"Hush," Achilles said sternly. "This isn't over yet," he told the Argonauts. "We may have made much progress and caused a huge dent in Hector's forces but there is still much more ahead of us. We will not lose all that we have earned with petty arrogance."

"What's our losses?" he asked.

Bellerophon landed next to Achilles. "A few Riders, General, and a few others here and there. Eleven in all, sir."

Achilles inhaled. "I see," he said sadly.

Although they lost few each loss was a friend. No, they were family.

"A moment of silence for those who died honorably in battle," Achilles said softly. "We'll collect the dead and send them back to the Argo II. We will give them proper burial later. For now, we make camp here. The wounded will return to the ship as well. We will continue on to Death's Doors tomorrow. We need sentries who will take watch in shifts."

"General, wouldn't we vulnerable here?" Annabeth asked.

"If they do attack again we'll be ready. They won't be able to overwhelm us in this narrow ravine. Hector's smart, he won't send the rest of his army to suicide. He knows we'll have to come out of hiding sooner or later. Tomorrow we will have to fight the rest of his army face to face without the aid of this ravine. That is when our skill will truly be tested. So, get a good night's rest and we will advance in the morning. You'll need your strength."

* * *

><p>"NO!" screamed Pallas. "MORE THAN HALF OF OUR ARMY IS GONE! SEND ANOTHER WAVE! CRUSH THEM!"<p>

"Have you forgotten what I said earlier?" Hector said calmly. "They will attack tomorrow. We will be ready for them and this time they won't have that stupid ravine with them. It was your monsters who fell for their bait. They are unruly and undisciplined. It is a mistake I will not make again."

"Whatever," snarled Pallas, "but I'm contacting some of my brothers."

"More giants?"

"Yes, you idiot!"

"So be it," Hector said in defeat. "If it also makes you feel better we can dispatch Echidna. She keeps on complaining that her children are hungry."

Pallas's eyes brightened. "Oh yes, Echidna!" she said with a smile. "I forgot about her. These New Argonauts will definitely enjoy her company."

"Splendid idea, my lady!" Hector said joyfully like it was her idea along.

"Let the Argonauts have their rest; for each moment they do is another moment our reinforcements arrive sooner!"

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	20. Horace

Percy trudged his way through New Thermopylae making his way for his shift on sentry duty. As he walked, the moon light dance off his reflecting armor and the wind gusted making him clutch the blanket wrapped around his shoulders even tighter to his skin. He passed hundreds of tents and sleeping bags strewn across the rocky ground. Most of the Argonauts were curled up in their sleeping bags, snoring, with their shields covering their bodies just in case the enemy launched a surprise arrow volley on them. Some were still awake; wether it be from jitters or the ever flowing adrenaline. To pass the time they were read boos with dim lamps because no fires were allowed in order to remain hidden from the enemy. Others played cards, talked quietly, bragged about the part they played in the battle, spent their attention on adjusting their armor, or sharpening their weapons.

Most of their faces were covered in sweat, dirt, and blood. Bags hung under their eyes from exhaustion. Some smiled either because they were still alive, they killed a ton of monsters that day, or somebody simply told them a funny joke. Some faces were of sorrow because they lost a loved one that day or they had left one behind at home. Percy noticed a few were looking at photographs of brothers, sisters, parents, boyfriends, or girlfriends. Maybe they were sad because they felt that they were going to die and they concluded they were already dead. Percy learned from a war movie that a lot of soldiers in combat conclude they are dead before it ever happens, it helps them carry out their mission without the fair of pain, suffering, and death.

If the Argonauts were happy, sad, anxious, or flat out tired; Percy was all of those. He was glad he survived the day, he was glad that his girlfriend was alive and so were the rest of his friend. He was sad that a few Argonauts had perished that day but he was also content with that almost all of them survived. He was anxious for what the next day and what it would hold for them. There was still six-thousand monsters left and they hadn't even faced the worst of them. Above all though, Percy was sleepy. All his muscles were sore from walking around in his armor, hefting his shield, and swinging his sword. All his energy was gone from calling upon the ocean to create that huge tsunami and mini-hurricane he did earlier. He was completely drained and he had only gotten a few hours of sleep after the battle. After the brief nap that he had; he spent the rest of the day with Annabeth and friends. Then it was back to sleep. He only got a couple hours till he was suddenly awaken by a fellow Argonaut letting him know it was his turn for sentry duty.

Percy sighed as he walked and tried to reassure himself. All he had to do was spend a couple hours of looking out into the dark and he would be done. His attempt at reassuring himself worked and actually gave him a burst of energy that he desperately needed. He continued to walk on through the ravine. He passed more Argonauts who looked up at him. A few gave him silent nods of determination, some smiled encouragingly, others gave him lazy shrugs, and there was a couple high-fives here and there. He passed by Grover who smiled and waved, Piper and Jason who were giggling with each other, and Hazel and Frank who were doing the same. Thalia was sparring with Clarisse, Hylla, and Reyna; which made Percy wondered how they could still keep going after a days worth of killing monsters. He spotted Octavian who nodded to him and went back to slicing open a beanie baby. Octavian's attitude had really improved ever since he killed his first monster. Percy walked by more familiar faces like the Stoll brothers who were plotting with the McDonald twins on how to prank the children of Demeter. He saw Butch grooming the Pegasi with a Bellerophon.

_Yo boss, how they hanging?_ Blackjack neighed to him.

Percy smiled and shook his head as he walked by the flying horse. He walked on a while more and was met by Annabeth.

"I thought you were sleeping?" she asked him.

"Sentry duty," Percy yawned, "with Leo I think."

"No, he went back to the Argo II with the rest of his siblings to work on repairs. You're with Hercules now."

Percy groaned inwardly. As cool as Hercules seemed; the way he walked, the way he talked, and the great things he did and is doing, Percy still felt that he was, to put it plainly, a jerk. Hercules may have made that public apology the night before they invaded the Atlas Mountains but it seemed phony and fake. Now that Percy thought further upon it, everything about Hercules seemed like a facade, especially his smile. It was just a mask he wore to cover who he really was. Percy couldn't blame the Hunters for not joining them and he couldn't blame Hera for disliking him. Even more evidence of how Hercules was a jerk, Percy was agreeing with Hera.

"Hey," Annabeth said snapping her fingers under his nose.

"Huh, what, where?" Percy mumbled.

"Where did you go too?" Annabeth asked studying his face carefully.

"Just thinking..."

"You're thinking? That's usually dangerous," she joked.

"Ha, ha, very funny."

Annabeth switched tones quickly as she studied his bloodless face. "Seriously though, you need some sleep. Maybe you shouldn't-"

"Annabeth, I can do this. It's only a couple of hours. Don't worry about it," he mumbled.

Annabeth studied him one more time and sighed, "Fine," she concluded. "Achilles wanted me to get you so we can discuss our strategy for tomorrow...but I'll fill you in later."

"Thanks"

She grabbed his arm and pulled him into slow kiss. "Good night sleepy head," and with that she walked off.

"Yeah, you too," Percy said a little dazed and it wasn't just from lack of sleep. She walked away and he watched her until she was completely out of sight.

Percy continued to trek on making his way through the labyrinth of tents and sleeping bags that were full of tired teenage warriors and satyrs. He was almost to the end of the ravine when Theseus stopped him.

"Percy, can I request your audience!" Theseus called to him.

"What now?" Percy said a little irritated.

Theseus put on a face of mock hurt. "Seems we have Mr. Grouchy Face over here."

"Sorry," Percy apologized. "I'm just a little tired and I have sentry duty, so if you don't mind…"

"Don't worry, I'll be brief." Theseus began

"Fine, go ahead, be brief!"

Theseus took a deep breathe. "I've had this feeling of impending doom for quite some time now. I fear the dread I am feeling will occur tomorrow. I think I may not survive the coming day."

"Hey man, don't talk like that," Percy said sincerely while placing an arm on his half-brothers shoulder

"Let me finish," Theseus almost snapped.

Percy retracted his hand in defense, "Sorry."

Theseus nodded and continued. "Before I was brought back from the Underworld, one could have described me as cynic or a pessimist, but I feel different now. The things I have heard, seen, and learned have changed my point of view on the world, life, and the gods. The new people I have met and the friends I have made have opened my eyes; especially my brother," Theseus nudged Percy.

Percy didn't realize who Theseus was talking about till a few seconds later and he smiled. "Thanks, I'm glad I can help."

Theseus returned the smile and continued. "Another person that stands out to me is Rachel Elizabeth Dare."

Percy raised his eyebrows and hid a grin, but he didn't say anything. He had a feeling where this was going.

"She is some much like Ariadne. No, even better. She is kind, intelligent, and beautiful. I have decided that if I somehow survive through this battle and make it back to America alive, that...I'm going to pursue Ms. Dare," Theseus stated.

Percy's jaw dropped. He knew this was coming and it still hit him a like a brick wall. "You do know she's an oracle, right? They can't date."

"Of course," Theseus told him. "Not for long though."

"Aren't they like oracles...for life?"

"Only if they break their vows," Theseus smirked.

"And what are those?" Percy asked incredulously.

"To remain a maiden and not fall in love with anyone."

"And how do you know that she will do that...with you?"

Theseus looked at him smugly. "Being the Oracle of Delphi is a heavy burden. One can grow easily tired of the life of reciting disturbing prophecies. Besides, I'm me," he concluded by jabbing his thumb at his chest cockily.

"What if she wants to be the oracle for, like, ever?"

"I'm a patient man," Theseus smiled.

"Right," Percy said almost sarcastically. He was trying his best to be optimistic. "Why are you telling me this again?"

"Because I heard you and her, well, you two have a history," Theseus said uncomfortably. "I need you to tell me everything about her."

"Dude, I have sentry duty! Can't this wait till tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow I might-" Theseus was shouting and realized it. He lowered his voice. "I might die," he whispered.

"Fine, I'll do this as fast as I can," Percy sighed.

Percy explained to him as much as he could think of Rachel. He told him about how Rachel was artistic, open-minded, intelligent, and kind. The things she like doing and learning about. Her favorite books, music, movies, shows, her past, present, and infinity.

"I already know all of this!" Theseus said unsatisfied.

Percy sighed again. Man, he thought, sighing was becoming a habit of his.

"Then what the Hades are wasting your time talking to me for? You obviously spent a lot of time with her at Camp. You know everything you need to know about her. Just be confident and you'll do fine. This was a good brother to brother talk but If you don't mid, I have sentry duty." With that he ran off leaving Theseus behind him.

Before Percy could run off, Theseus snatched his arm. The two locked eyes and Percy returned to his friend, his brother.

"Promise me this," Theseus solemnly, "if I do die, my sword and cudgel are hers."

Percy shook his head. "You're not going to-"

Theseus cut him off, "Promise me!"

Percy sighed one final time. "Fine, I promise."

Theseus nodded, "Good," and then let go over Percy's arm.

And with that the two parted ways heading in opposite directions of the ravine.

* * *

><p>Percy found Hercules at the entrance of the ravine crouched and looking off into the distance. He had his Nemean Lion helmet off his head. Percy only saw him once without his helmet and that was when he got the crapped kicked out of him by Frank. Hercules had a shaved skull with neat auburn hair. It seemed to small on his very large and muscular body. His face, handsome of course, just like the rest of the Heroes of Old, but he didn't look at that moment. The expression that he wore was glum and tired, very unusual compared to the customary fake smile.<p>

"Percy," he greeted softly as Percy crouched next to him.

"Seen anything?" Percy asked.

Hercules shook his head. "No, Hector is smart, Pallas, not so much, but Hector, yes. He won't attack till we do."

Percy nodded and said nothing else. Neither did Hercules. The two crouched under the moonlight, looking off into the dark, searching for enemy movement, all the while being awkwardly silent. Percy felt very uncomfortable being around history's greatest hero and he gulped nervously as he twiddled his thumbs.

"I've heard much about you Percy Jackson," Hercules said breaking the silence. "I overhear our fellow Argonauts. They talk about you. They call you the next me, the next Hercules. I agree with them."

"Huh?" Percy asked dumbfounded.

"Of course," Hercules boomed. "You have done almost every quest that I have done and completed almost all of my twelve labors. You, Perseus Jackson, are the next great hero. I would go as far to say that you are the greatest of the seven."

"Thank you," was all Percy could manage. He was lost for words. Here he was thinking that Hercules was the biggest jerk on the planet but the guy was complimenting him. Then Percy changed his mind quickly. This wasn't real. Hercules was only being fake again.

"You are better than me Percy!" Hercules continued, excited now. "You are kind, thoughtful, selfless, compassionate, determined, a true leader; unlike me. I am brutal and selfish. You helped Zoe Nightshade while I left her with her father to suffer. Do you disrespect those below you, no. Do you deny others the right of respect? I think not. Did you kill your own family? Of course not. You care for every half-blood, satyr, and even mortals! They are all your family and you protect them." Hercules went on. "When I found the most destructive ways to solve my problems, you approached them in the most methodical and safest method."

"Well, I did have a lot of help," Percy admitted. "There was Annabeth, Grover, Tyson-"

Hercules cut him off. "He's modest too!"

Percy felt his cheeks get hot and was pretty sure his face was coloring.

"When I first saw you, I felt that you should be bowing to me on your knees, all of you modern heroes, but you have shown me otherwise." Then Hercules did the unexpected. He bowed his head to Percy while crossing his right arm over his chest and putting his fist over his heart.

Percy could only look at him amazed. Percy now realized that Hercules was being sincere, he wasn't being fake or lying; or playing for appearances.

"I caused a lot of pain when I was alive back in the day. Even when I tried to absolve for my sins, by doing the Twelve Labors after, I killed my family, I still went about them only thinking only about myself. It was always me first. I only did the labors to make myself feel better not others. You, Perseus Jackson, only do what you do because others are on your mind. You have shown me what I need to do too truly repent; which is to die for the Argonauts, die for nymphs, die for satyrs, die for the mortals, die for this world, and die for you."

"I would do the same for you," Percy was surprised when he heard it come out of his lips. He was even more surprised that he meant it.

Hercules looked up at Percy and grinned. "Now enough of this serious businesses, tell me, what do you find to be the fastest method to annoy Chiron?"

Percy cracked a smile, "Well..."

Percy and Hercules spent their shift playfully one-upping each other. Percy regretted dreading his sentry duty earlier because it turned out he actually enjoyed it.

* * *

><p>Tyler looked at himself in the reflection of the shield that he was crouching in front, using it as a mirror. He inspected his new haircut that he did himself with his very own trench knife. He tired to rationalize with himself that the hair cut wasn't that bad, he hoped. His dark hair may have been cut unevenly but it no longer shaggily hung over his face like a sheep dog. For the first time he could remember, in the past two years, he could make out his facial features. He had dark eyes, crinkles above his eyebrows from scowling a lot, and a few scars here and the he didn't remember getting. His features were almost wolfish and the more he looked the more he believed he was one. He regretted cutting his hair as soon as he was done. He felt that he looked exposed, weak, and stupid but there was a felling somewhere in his gut that told him that Julia would've like it, that's reason he did it in the first place.<p>

He ran his hand through his hair brushing off all the excess. Locks of his fell to the ground like leaves.

He looked his hair over another time. "Fine, you win," he said as if Julia was actually there, standing behind him, smirking.

"Food!" Grover moaned sleepily beside him as the satyr slumbered in his sleep bag…

"Go back to sleep goat boy," Tyler ordered him.

"All right," Grover mumbled while slamming his head back into his pillow with sounds of snoring following.

Sleep, Tyler thought, that actually sounded good. Now that he had thought about it, he was exhausted. He spent the day killing monsters and exacting revenge. He looked his new haircut over one final time in the shield's reflection, ran his hand through his hair, and sighed in defeat. He brushed off the hair that covered his sleeping bag, sheathed his knife, blew out the candle to his lamp, and laid back looking up at the night sky. He could see the stars clearly spewed across the sky. It was as if a god sneezed and the stars was their snot floating in space. Tyler made out Orion, the Little Dipper, Draco, Sagittarius, Hercules, and so on. He grinned inwardly. All the constellations he saw were in fact real people and creatures that had all lived at one point, and he's even met a few. If only Julia could be with him now, she loved constellations, and Greek Mythology. She would have loved to see this and would have loved to meet Hercules, Jason, Theseus, Perseus and the others. She would be so jealous and it made Tyler guilty. He was experiencing all this without her. NO! His brain screamed to him. She wants you to be strong, not weak. Stop moping. You need rest. Go to sleep so you can get more energy to kill monsters.

Tyler rarely listened to his brain because he usually listened to Julia but she wasn't there at that moment and he decided it wast time to listen to that thing located between his ears. He closed his eyes and fell asleep instantly.

* * *

><p>Tyler's eyes lids flicked open. He was standing in a dark hall way. There was a dim and constantly flashing light that lit they hallway. How did he get her? Tyler studied the walls of the hallway to better understand his surroundings . Their were mosaics of Spartan Warriors, Roman Centurions, paintings of Confederate soldiers, but the most prominent frames contained photographs from all time periods. They were photographs mostly of soldiers smiling with cigarettes in their mouths. There was one of a young man dressed in a military uniform standing in front of an American flag. Tyler walked further down the hall passing closed doors that he ignored. He was only interested in the photographs.<p>

As he walked down the hall, the picture quality improved, and changed from black and white to colored photos. There were pictures of more soldiers but during different time periods and wars. They were in a green jungle, with different weapons, and different uniforms. This was the Vietnam War. One picture was of a young man dressed in all green, jungle army camouflage, an M-16 slung over his shoulder, and a lit cigarette between his grinning lips. Tyler walked on and reached the final picture. It was of a man in a huge desert and column of smoke erupted behind him. He was dressed in desert camouflage, he was manning the machine gun on top of a military jeep with "KILL HAJIS" spray-painted on to it. The man had a bandanna around his neck, a kevlar helmet on his noggin, and he wore a pair of sun glasses. He had wolf like features, his face seemed to be glued in a permanent scowl, but yet he was still grinning. Realization dawned on Tyler. He knew this man.

"Dad?" he breathed.

The sudden sound of a sitcom laugh-track caused Tyler to jump. Someone turned on the t.v. in the next room. He diverted his attention away from the hallway, which reminded him of an evolution exhibit at a museum, except instead of starting with a caveman and ending with a human, it began with a Spartan and ended with a Marine. Tyler inspected where he was. The makings of the building allowed him to infer that he was in an apartment. The apartment he was in was very small, one that low-income families live in. Tyler walked out of the hallway and into the living room. There was a single armchair and a small portable black and white t.v. was placed in front of the chair and it was propped on a stool. Behind the living room was a very tiny kitchen with a gas stove, a toaster, a sink, a collapsible table with aluminum folding chairs, and a cooler for a fridge. Tyler knew this place, he had been here before, but that was a long ago time ago. This had been his and his dad's apartment when he was seven years old. He knew that's where he was for sure. How he remembered, he didn't know.

As Tyler's eyes adjusted to the dark, more came into view. The apartment was cluttered with beer bottles and beer cans. There was so many of them he could not make out the carpet underneath. There was mountains of empty beer bottles. The trashed state of the apartment wasn't the shocker though; the real shocker was the dead man sitting in the in the armchair. His throat was sliced open and blood seeped freely out of the humungous gash in his neck. Tyler recognized that man. It was the same one in the photograph. He may be a couple of years older and he gained some weight, okay a lot of weight, but Tyler new that man. That man was his father.

"Sad isn't it?" a female voiced asked referring to the dead boy.

Tyler nodded and looked to the speaker. She was a middle-aged women and she was sitting in one of the folding chairs at the 'dinner table.' Her black hair was tied in a gray bandanna, she had a nose ring, and she wore a grey United States Marine Corps tank top. The tank top revealed her bare arms which were covered in tattoos. One arm was covered in Ancient Greek writing and the other was in Latin. Tyler somehow was able to read both arms clearly. They said words like 'kill,' 'death,' 'SPQR,' 'battle,' 'Spartans 'till the End,' 'I *grenade* the USMC,' and other stuff like that. There were a few icons of deadly monsters, dragon faces, wolves, and fighting warriors. The women looked like she was in her mid forties. She seemed as if she was one of those cool moms that would take her kids to toilet-paper and egg someones house on Halloween, or a mom that let you skip school when you weren't sick, she would drive fast on the freeway, fight another kid's mom for you, or tell off a mean teacher. She was a parent that would talk to you as an equal, not a child. Surprisingly, Tyler knew this women too. Despite his memory loss, he knew this women was his mother, Eris the Goddess of Chaos and the Lady of Strife.

"Sit," she said gesturing to empty plastic chair across from her.

Tyler did as he was told. He made his way across the field of beer bottles and cans, passed his dead father, and sat down at the table across from his mother.

"It's been awhile since I've seen your hair that short. I like it."

Tyler said nothing.

"Do you remember me?" she asked.

Tyler nodded.

"I'm guessing you remember what happened this night then," she said gesturing to the messy apartment, the scene around them.

Tyler slowly nodded as his mind flashed back.

"This was the night you killed your father. He ordered you to grab him another beer from that cooler," she pointed to the cooler behind her, "but instead you decided to walk into the kitchen, you searched the drawers, you pulled out the biggest knife you could find, which happened to be your great grandfather's old trench knife, you snuck up behind your father sitting in the arm chair, and you brought the blade across his carotid artery, and you let the blood spill; your first kill."

Tyler nodded. His hands were shaking as his mind flashed back to the memory. He remembered the feel of the knife in his grip and his dad's warm blood rinsing down his bare hands. It made him shiver.

"From that night and on you were never the same." Eris concluded. "That is why you can kill so easily, that is why you kill without hesitation, that is why you are indifferent to murder, and apathetic to death. This night, that we are re-experiencing in your dreams, is what made you who you are today," she explained. "For that, I am sorry. I am sorry that I left you alone with this man. I thought he would care for you but he loved me too much. He loved me more than he would ever love his own child. My departure destroyed him. He was angry with me and he took his anger out on you."

Tyler could only nod as his memories flooded back to him. He remembered how his dad beat him, screamed at him, threatened him, neglected him.

"He wasn't like that when I met him. I mean he was violent and all, but never to children, especially not his own. He had just come back from the Gulf War; Operation Desert Storm. He was alone and I was there for him. He was charming, smart, funny, loved conflict, and he had a wild side. We had a lot of good times together but they couldn't last forever. I had a job to do being a goddess. He couldn't understand that and it infuriated him. Then you were born which made things even worse for him. I tried intervening earlier but Hera ordered me not to. It was part of my, ah, punishment. You belonged to her not me." Eris pounded her fist on the table. "She told me about your future. She said that your time spent in this dreadful place would make you stronger and of course it did, but it also made you heartless. It made you hateful and wrathful, like your father. You stayed with that man for seven years of your life with no hope and no help. Eventually you took matters into your own hands and, well, the rest is history."

Tyler took a deep breathe taking in the information. This dream and his mothers presence triggered something in his mind. More memories flooded his brain. He could tell these weren't ones planted by Hera. These were genuine memories that he collected on his own. He saw himself training, fighting, killing. Three letters always popped into his head, I-L-H, and they attacked his brain like pins and needles. What did this mean?

"I need to tell you some things Tyler. That is why I have come to you. These things that I am about to tell you are things I didn't even tell you when you lived on Olympus," Eris said sternly. "Hera made me swear to never tell you anything about your future. This was also part of my punishment but I can no longer sit and watch on the side lines. She forbid me telling and the same you but screw punishments!"

Tyler could only nod as more memories flashed in his brain.

"I will explain to you who you exactly are. You Tyler, are special, very special. You are my first and only demigod child, period. On top of that, you were born from both my Roman and Greek form. Your mother, me, is Eris and Discordia at the same time. My supposed, 'different,' personalities are one and the same. Neither is crazier, more destructive, or more ferocious than the other. The only thing that changed for me when the Romans took over, was my name. You are the only demigod in history to be born under a god's Greek and Roman form. Perhaps my Roman side is a little more serious and my Greek one a little mischievous but nonetheless, they are the same person."

"You were able to be born this way because I love war. I love it for it's chaos, the blood, the shouting of men, the groaning of the dying, and the moaning of the dead. The gods called me insane and the mortals feared me. They still do, but do you think I give a shit? I have been described as a lunatic and for this the Gods shun me like a leper, even Hades fears me."

"Tyler, you are a true child of war unlike children of Mars/Ares. Ares is only present while war takes place. I am present before, during, and after. When the rest of the gods leave the battle field; I am the sole remainder who rejoices in the havoc that I wreak. Not even Ares stays behind to analyze the results. I am the one who should be the true war god! But alas, I'm too much to handle for my fellow gods. They have tried to get rid of me but I will never fade, I will never die because there will always be war. Even if Gaea wins this war, takes over, and destroys my fellow Olympians, I will still be here waiting for the next conflict."

"I didn't think it was possible for anyone to love war as much as I but then I met your father. Your father didn't know of me but I knew of him and his entire blood line. War flowed through it. He fought in battle like his father before him, and his father before him, and so on. Every single one of the males in his family tree have fought in war at one point or another. This dates all the way back to the inception of mortals. Your ancestors were at Troy, they fought at Thermopylae, they formed ranks in the Roman Empire, they faced Hannibal's armies, and they were even present during the fall of Rome. They suffered frost bite at Valley Forge, they bled on the fields of Gettysburg, they crawled through the muddy trenches of France, stormed the Beaches of Normandy, hacked through the jungle of the Ho Chi Min Trail, and much more. Your father fought in Desert Storm back in the 1990s. He came back home to America to find me waiting there. The way he talked and the way he acted brought out every emotion and personal trait that I had inside me. He brought forth Eris and Discordia at the same time. The he dragged you out of me and brought you into this world."

"Tyler Horace you are a hunter, a killer, a wolf. Lupa was furious she couldn't have you as one of her pups but you had other purposes. Strife runs in your veins." Eris smirked.

"I see myself and your father in you. The others fear you for it but they are in their right to do so. They take one look at your face and they can sense my spirit residing in you. That is why Achilles mistrusts you, even hates you, it could also have something to do with me starting the Trojan war, but it really isn't important. What is important is that you will naturally be feared by all demigods, gods, monsters, titans, and mortals. You are the true bane of the Earth, Tyler Horace, Child of Strife, and they will hate you for it. There was one who didn't feel this way about you and you know her very well, one that you have known for a very long time."

Tyler looked up to his mom suddenly and made eye contact with her.

Eris nodded, "Tyler, you and Julia; you two knew each other way before your memories were stolen by Hera."

Tyler's face looked surprised. He had a feeling that this was true but hearing it being confirmed made him shudder.

"You two actually hated each other. You were always arguing and fighting. You were like two rival siblings but unlike normal mortal siblings, you two tried killing each other with deadly weapons." She smiled. "Julia was calm, cool, and collected like her mother, Athena. You were chaotic and uncontrolled like me. Hera needed you two for a mission and she needed the both of you to be able to work together. That is the reason, the explanation for the last two years of your life, Hera simply needed you. I had no say in your life whatsoever, it was part of my punishment. She erased both of your memories and forced you two together so that you could learn and grow from each other instead of having you at each other's throats at every second of the waking day. She made a gamble with the two of you which paid off ten fold in the end. You two became more than just colleagues or friends, you became brother and sister. You two would do anything for each other. That is why you are doing everything in your power to save her and that is why she is doing the same for you. She is alive Tyler, Julia is alive."

Tyler's eyes brightened. He spoke for the first time, "Where?" was all he could manage.

"That information is what you do not need. You will find that out on your own but I came to you in your dreams for a reason, one purpose. I came to warn you. When you wake from this dream and face the days ahead of you, you will find your self no longer the same. You will change in the next few days. How you will change I am unaware of but I do know it comes with great sacrifice. Many of the Argonauts will die tomorrow and the ones you call, 'the Heroes of Old,' will be haunted by their pasts once again but this time it will be a little more personal."

"Now, we finally come to the line in the prophecy about you saving a life. You will save a life exactly how the prophecy tells it but the line works both ways. When it comes to deciphering prophecies you must be able to read between the lines. You will save one but lose another in the process. That is how it works."

Tyler fell back into his habit of nodding and nodded. His head hurt too much for him to do anything else and he still didn't know what to make of all this new information.

I-L-H

I-L-H

"That is all," Eris finished standing to her feet.

"Wait, what?" Tyler asked confused. "That's it?"

"Yep, that's about it," she said plainly. "Why, do you have any questions?"

Tyler had a few. "What is this punishment you keep speaking of? Why are you being punished?"

Eris grinned. She picked up the remote to the t.v. and began flipping through the channels. The images on the screen were strange. The picture changed from black and white to color. The first image was of a golden apple, another was many beautiful women, then they were shouting at each other. Tyler saw the faces of many angry gods he recognized, but he didn't know how he did recognize them, or if he met any of them, his memory was still returning to him. The images flashed on the screen; there were soldiers, a great fortress, giant gates, battles, men screaming and dying. The image that stuck out to him was the on of Achilles. He looked a lot younger here, had less scars on his body, and he seemed to glow gold. He was killing men by the thousands and every time they got close to killing him, their weapons would break on contact or bounce off him harmlessly. The images flashed and Achilles was dragging a dead body across the desert while riding a chariot. Then it changed to Achilles now on his knees, looking to The heavens, and he was screaming because an arrow was lodged in his heel. More images flashed; there was giant wooden horse, a city in flames, women wailing, children crying, people dying, and then the t.v. went black.

"I started the Trojan War," Eris explained. "I was angered with the Gods and their constant arrogance and their petty bickering. I comedically brought out their true nature by presenting the Golden Apple of Discord to them. 'Who is the fairest of them all?'" Eris smirked at here own words like she was being clever. Tyler didn't get the apparent joke.

Tyler thought back when he first met Julia or two years ago when he thought they were meeting for the first time. He had stolen an apple from a vendor and was being chased by the police. She said something to him a long the lines of, 'all that over one apple?'

"A river of blood in the name of a freakin' apple," Eris grunted. "Anyway, the gods hated me, even more than they all ready did, and so they had Hera come up with my punishment. She saw fit that every half-blood child I gave birth to would be hers. I swore to never have mortal children and I held that oath for three-thousand years but I couldn't hold out forever, you were born Tyler. I'm sorry."

Tyler shook his head. "For what? You're sorry that Hera's a bitch? That's not your fault, it's hers."

Eris chuckled at the comment. "Any more questions?"

"My knife?"

"Ah, yes," Eris said tapping her finger to her chin. "That was the very one you used to slay your father. When you came to Olympus we had it refined with Celestial Bronze, Imperial Gold, Adamantine, Stygian Iron, Steel, and Silver. Each member in the, 'group,' you were in get's their own special weapon with ability to kill gods, monsters, titans, anything. It shows you that the gods are willing to trust you in return for your service."

"Huh?" Tyler asked confused. His eyes bugged, "Wait a sec, ILH!"

"I sense you're getting your memories back. That is all I can tell you. The rest will come in time."

It was obvious she was withholding information but Tyler didn't press her.

Eris caressed Tyler on the cheek and her dark eyes locked with his. "I must be off to prepare for the coming war ahead. So long my child."

"Goodbye," Tyler paused, "mother."

"One more thing before I go; most gods never tell their demigod children this because they would be lying, but I mean what I say Tyler. What I'm saying is...that...that I love you my son."

Before Tyler could respond she disappeared. Tyler's old apartment faded away and the scene shifted to blackness.

* * *

><p>Tyler sat bolt upright out of his sleeping bag with his trench knife in his hand. He looked around to see the sun had risen and all the Argonauts were up and about. They were gathering their supplies, checking their weapons and armor, and they were forming ranks. Tyler sighed as he pressed his hands to his head. Did his mother really visit him in his sleep or was that just his brain's clever way of giving him back all his old memories? Tyler felt his cheek were his mother had touched him. In his head, 'I love you,' echoed over and again. His mother did visit him. Tyler pressed his hands to his face and groaned. What had he learned? He learned that his mother was psycho, people will always hate him, Julia's alive, he's part of some group, Hera's a bitch, and his mom loves him. I-L-H, Golden Apple, Wolves; those things pounded in his head.<p>

"Rise and shine sleeping beauty!" Coach Hedge yelled into his ear with a megaphone.

Tyler groaned again.

"Good you are up," Thalia said from above him.

Tyler looked up removing his hands from his face.

"Whoa!" she exclaimed upon seeing his freshly cut hair.

"What?"

"Nice hair cut," she said with a smirk, "but anyway we're on the move, Death's Doors here we come!"

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	21. The Argonaut

The Heroes of Old, the Prophecy of Seven members, Annabeth, Clarisse, Reyna, Octavian, Grover, Thalia, and Hylla were gathered on a high slope a few miles away from New Thermopylae. The group laid flat on their bellies to avoid being spotted by the army of monsters a few hundred yards south of their hill. Between them and the monsters was a wide open mountainous plane. Behind the monsters was the supposed entrance to the valley where Death's Doors were hidden. The group couldn't see the entrance due to the three-thousand monsters blocking it. There was a lot of open ground to cover between them and the monsters. They were susceptible to aerial attacks, artillery strikes, arrow bombardment, and the plane was most likely booby trapped

"How about we stage our archers and a couple of cannons here?" Odysseus suggested referring to the slope they laid on. "The archers can lay down covering fire for the main assault."

"My Riders can keep the skies clear as well," Bellerophon added.

Achilles scratched his chin thoughtfully, "That could work."

"Yeah, but we still have to deal with all those booby traps out there," Frank put in gesturing to the wide open plane.

Leo agreed. "I can spot out a dozen from here; land mines, gas canisters, trip wires, and pit falls. I can disable them all but they would take me weeks."

"We don't have weeks, let alone hours," said Achilles. "I didn't say this in front of the others to prevent panic but the enemy is most likely getting more and more reinforcements as we speak. The assault must be now."

"But there's still things we have to deal with!" Annabeth protested.

"We haven't even taken on Echidna's pets yet," Percy groaned.

"And look over there," said Leo pointing to the army of monsters. He was specifically pointing at futuristic cannons. "Midas has been funding Gaea's army and he has even set them up with state of the art weaponry. That's probably where they got the booby traps and those laser turrets."

"What are laser turrets?" Hercules asked confused.

"You know, guns that shoot light beams that disrupt your molecules, causing you to spontaneously combust?" Leo tried to explain.

Hercules shrugged, "I still don't understand."

"Never mind," Leo sighed in defeat as if he was talking to a child, "it's a future thing and it's bad, and you definitely don't wan't to get nailed by one of those."

"Understood," Hercules nodded.

Percy narrowed his eyes scanning the crowd of monsters and then scoffed in disbelief. "Are you kidding me?"

"What now?" Achilles sighed knowing all to well it was most likely bad news.

"See that chariot with the three 'g's' on it?" Percy said.

Achilles nodded.

"It signifies the Triple G. Ranch. It's Geryon," explained Percy

"Who?" Leo asked.

"A giant with three torsos," Hercules said taking his turn to explain. "He can only be killed if he is hit in all three of his hearts at the same time. I've killed him before so he shouldn't be a problem."

"He isn't the problem," said Percy. "The problem is that he owns a farm that breeds man-eating horses, fire breathing monsters, and plenty more goodies. He's most likely stocked their army with them."

The news was getting worse and worse as they studied their enemy. The confidence within them was starting to leave their spirits. Their two previous victories were beginning to seem miniscule. The odds were being stacked against them and being constructed into a great tower.

"Damn it!" Jason Grace snapped spotting a symbol imprinted on the shield of a dracaena.

"What?" Piper asked quizzically.

"Look," he told her.

Piper's face drained of color, "It can't be!"

"No way," Leo exclaimed understanding what they were looking at.

"What is it?" the original Jason asked worried.

"The 'M,'" Jason Grace managed to say.

The original Jason spotted what they were looking at. "'M,' meaning what?" he questioned but he didn't have to. He had a feeling that he already knew the answer.

"Medea," his modern counter-part told him gravely. "We met her several months ago. She tried to kill me, Leo, and Piper but we escaped...barely."

All eyes set on the original Jason who's face looked as if had seen a ghost which was somewhat true.

"That doesn't necessarily mean that she's here," Hazel put in hopefully. "She could be somewhere else and her products are just being put to use."

No one responded or said anything else due to fear that they would jinx their current situation or upset the past Jason even more.

"We're screwed," Grover said cheerfully breaking the silence.

"Laser turrets, Geryon, M-M-Media? Does anyone have any brilliant ideas? Now would be the time to share," Achilles said expectantly.

"Uh," mumbled Leo. "I may have a couple..."

All eyes turned to him.

"And they are...?" Reyna urged him.

Leo nervously cleared his throat. "We have four remote controlled, fully armored, and mobile battering rams on the ship. I was thinking we rig them all to blow with greek fire, send them across the plane, they will set off at least most of the booby traps as they go, allowing us safe passage across the field. I'm not assuming that they'll take out most of the traps and even make it to Gaea's arm, but if they do we can detonate the greek fire and take out monsters in the process. As for Midas's technological weapons I've been working on something with Jason Grace. We thought it might come in handy one day and this looks like the day. Plus it's got a badass name."

"Tell 'em," Jason Grace said with a smirk.

"It's called an EMP; short for electro-magnetic pulse. It has the ability to shut down any and all electrical devices by emitting a pulse," Leo explained. "Jason, being a son of Zeus, is able to control electricity. I was thinking Thalia, Hercules, Perseus, and Jason Grace combine their powers to emit an EMP. We're going to have to be close though and that means taking the Argo II. My siblings, the names I just mentioned, and I will board the Argo II. We take the wounded and the dead to a new and safe spot. We fly the ship above the monsters. We'll engage the enemy and then release an EMP. Once all their weapons are down, the rest of the Argonauts can attack and we'll provide covering fire."

"Leo, thats genius," said Annabeth with a grin which soon died, "but wait, wouldn't the EMP also knock out the Argo II?" Annabeth asked.

"I thought of that," Leo said matter-of-factly. "I have installed the ship with an EMP shield. The ship is alway sending out radio waves that defends us from such attacks."

Everyone looked at Leo in a new light. They new he was great with his hands and savvy with machines but they never thought of him as a genius. They could tell he knew because he wore the widest smile on his face and his cheeks were red.

"Perseus and I," began Hercules, "may not be as gifted with our father's domain as the Grace siblings but we can still command some minor storm magic."

Achilles nodded, "All right, it's settled then."

He cleared his throat, "Here's the plan: we unleash the battering rams across the plane, each displaced equal from one another so they can cover as much ground as possible, and hopefully they discharge most of the traps. The archers will set up here with some cannons. The Riders will take to the sky but will not engage till the laser turrets are down. The Argo II will attack first and will deploy the EMP. The Riders will then engage. The archers will fire a few volleys and then the ground forces attack, that's everything. Dismissed!"

"Yes, sir!" They all shouted and took off in different directions heading to complete their tasks.

"Jason!" Achilles called.

"Yes, sir," Jason Grace asked.

"No, not you, the original," Achilles said a bit annoyed.

"Yes, sir," the original asked.

Achilles looked around to make sure the others weren't in ear shot. "Are you going to be all right?" he whispered .

"What are you talking about, sir?"

"About, you know, the 'M' word."

Jason's eyes widened in understanding and he wore an offended expression. "I _will_ be fine, I _am_ fine!" Jason said defensively.

A lie, obviously, but Achilles decided not to press and make it worse. He may have been the main general but Jason was his elder and he respected him; he sought his guidance. He wasn't going to ruin the relationship they had; especially not before a battle.

"That is all then."

"I would like to make a request," Jason said.

Achilles nodded for him to go ahead.

"I want to be aboard the Argo II with the children of Zeus and Hephaestus."

"May I ask why?"

"I feel something profound is going to happen today. I would feel better aboard the Argo II. I sailed aboard it's predecessor and I'm going to fly aboard this one."

"I could really use you here on the ground," Achilles told him.

"I feel better with my ship."

It was actually Leo's ship but Achilles knew what he meant and again he respected Jason.

"Go."

* * *

><p>"And they're off," Will Solace commented as he watched the four battering rams burst from their starting points and race across the plane.<p>

The battering rams were the size of pickup trucks. Each one sat on four gigantic wheels, they were covered in bronze and gold armor plates, and the actually battering ram was the width of small Redwood trunk that was thirty feet long. At the very tip where the ram was meant to strike gates, doors, or fortifications, was a gigantic bronze ram's heads. Each battering ram had the emblem of Festus, the symbol of the Argonauts, spray painted on it's armor. The rams zoomed across the open grassland detonating booby traps as they went.

"I hope this works," Will prayed.

"Aye," agreed Odysseus beside him.

The two of them and the other hundred archers were gathered on the hill that the battle plan was formulated on. They all had their bows at the ready as they continued to watch the four remote controlled battering rams. The rams set traps off as they went. As they raced along; mines exploded, toxic fumes were released into the air, and spikes exploded from the ground. Nothing was slowing them.

"Go, go, go!" Will cheered them on.

"What we didn't take into account was if the booby traps are reusable, and if they are, do they reset," Odysseus formulated, worried.

"Well, at least we know the location of them," Will said optimistically.

The monster army realized what was happening and began firing arrows and launched projectiles at the rams. They merely bounced off the rams' aroma harmlessly. The rams continued for a little while longer getting closer and closer to their target. One suddenly exploded into flames as it hit a patch of earth loaded with land-mines. There was an even larger secondary explosion that echoed through the mountains and sent up a huge column of smoke and dust. Rubble rained from the sky. Another ram went down into a hidden pitfall never to be seen again. There was two left and they continued to truck along, approaching the monsters closer and closer.

One finally exploded when a stray boulder thrown from an Earthborn struck it exactly were the Greek Fire was located. The ram exploded which made the ground shake. The explosion was still close enough to vaporize a dozen monsters. The final battering ram managed to make it through their lines causing fifty to be knocked backward, crushing a score into dust, and another dozen to go flying. The ram finally stopped deep within enemy lines. The ram stood in it's spot unmoving. The monster growled and began attacking it with swords, hammers, axes, and clubs. Nothing happened and when they realized it was harmless they backed away and then faced the Argonauts across the way, both armies preparing for battle.

"Crap, it didn't detonate!" shouted Will frantically. "The detonator isn't work!"

"Nothing we can do about it," Odysseus said. "At least it took out most of the traps."

"What do we do now?" asked an archer.

"We wait," Odysseus answered.

* * *

><p>"Damn it!" exclaimed Leo in frustration from the Argo II high in the sky directly above the monsters. "That should've worked!" he continued to shout as he analyzed the results of the failed battering ram and the pretty much intact monster army bellow them! "It's just sitting there uselessly."<p>

"They did most of their job," the past Jason reassured him. "Right now we have turrets to kill and it's only a matter of time before they spot us."

"Too late," said Perseus as he pointed down at the horde of monsters on the ground. They were prepping catapults and their turrets hummed to life. "They're taking aim!"

Leo's mind went into autopilot as he gave out orders to his siblings. "Man the cannons! Prepare to fire! Starboard side, starboard side! Target their war machines, their war machines!"

"Aye, Captain!" They all replied.

"Raise the shields, weapons to maximum!" Leo yelled into the microphone of the ship's PA system.

Jason Grace cocked an eyebrow while giving him a sidelong glance. "Aye, aye, Captain Kirk!"

"I don't think we have enough shields to cover the whole ship," Hercules stated picking up spartan shields and trying to barricade the railings.

"Forget it," cried Leo, "it's a future thing!"

"Understood," Hercules understood.

"Guys," Thalia snapped.

Leo went back into action. "Fire for affect on my mark!"

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!"

"MARK!"

"FIRE!" echoed throughout the ship and the mountain plane.

The cannons roared to life as they hurled cannonballs to the monsters bellow them. The monster fired back with arrows and boulders launched from catapults or thrown by cyclops and lesser giants. Those forms of attack merely bounced off the strong hull of the Argo II. What really did the damage was the turrets. They fired green bolts of energy up into the air which exploded into the side of the ship causing it to rumble, creek, groan, and buck. Slivers of wood and metal were picked up into the air as holes were punched into the hull of the ship.

"Maintain fire!" Leo yelled over the ruckus in the PA. "Thalia, Jason Grace, Hercules, and Perseus to me! Let's go people we don't have much time." Leo felt a terrifying sensation in his gut. He had a scary hunch that something bad was going to happen.

The group assembled in the middle of the deck.

"Jason, your javelin!" Leo requested.

Jason took a deep breathe, flipped his coin, and caught it as a javelin. He held it gingerly and kissed it. "It's time buddy," he said stroking the weapon. "I know we just met but its time to part ways. You knew it had to come to this."

Thalia rolled her eyes.

Leo continued to give out orders but he had to shout over the noise of the cannons and the turrets. The ship continued to shake and groan in protest. One of the turrets scored a major hit causing the ship to buck and the passengers to scramble to their knees.

Once back in his feet Leo shouted, "Hercules, your bow!"

From a trunk, Hercules produced a massive long bow. It was larger than Odysseus's. Although Hercules preferred his club over a bow, he was still proficient with the weapon, not as good as Odysseus, but whenever the time called for ranged attacks, he would use it. He rejoined the group. Jason handed Hercules his javelin. Hercules notched the javelin into his bow string and aimed it towards the army of monster bellow. He summoned the kingdom of his father within him and transferred it to the tip of the javelin. He felt the hair on his skin rise from the electricity coursing through his body.

"Okay," shouted Leo to the rest. "You guys, now!"

The others outstretched their arms to the tip of the javelin. Bolts of lightning arced through their finger tips. Leo felt the air pressure drop causing his ears to pop and he tasted metal in his mouth. The children of Zeus felt a tug in their guts and the world spun around them as they put all their energy into the tip of the javelin.

"When Leo?" Thalia grunted through gritted teeth. "We can't hold this forever!"

"Just a few seconds," Leo said licking his lips.

"Leo..." gasped Perseus. "You do realize your ship is going to be shot to pieces if we don't deliver this EMP!"

"I'm giving it all I got captain but I'm going to need a bloody miracle," yelled Jason.

"NOW!" screamed Leo.

Hercules released his grip on his bow string and sent the javelin, acting as a gigantic makeshift lightning conducting arrow, flying through the air. The children of Zeus broke their lightning contact with it and feel to their knees. The javelin screeched as it cut it's way through the sky like a meteor, traveling faster than the speed of sound, amped up from all the electricity it was charged with. In mere seconds, it crash landed dead center in the army of monster. There was a bright white light and the very Earth shook. Monsters screamed. It was only later on did the group realize the explosion that they caused was similar to one that of he Master Bolt but only smaller. When the white light faded, it revealed that where once a thousand monsters stood, there was only unoccupied mountain terrain. There was a rushing of wind as a transparent tidal wave of electricity, originating from the javelin, pulsed outward in circulate formation through the monsters' ranks. It was the EMP. The turrets lost power, ceased fire immediately, and died into useless metal shells.

"Holy crap,it worked," Leo said dumbfounded. "IT FREAKING WORKED!" he cheered as he jumped up and down.

Everyone else on the ship cheered as well. The ship may have sustained a lot of damage but at least they survived and got the job done.

The original Jason smiled. "SIGNAL THE REST OF THE ARGONAUTS! LET THE ASSAULT BEGIN!"

From the crow's nest, Perseus raised his sword in the air and waved it like he was waving a flag. From the clouds came Bellerophon leading his Pegasi Riders. They soared over the deck of the ship and dive bombed down on the enemy army bellow. They swooped down and wreaked havoc on their enemies.

"Cannons, aim for the turrets!" barked Leo. "They could come back on line any minute. Your second priority is those catapults."

"VALDEZ!" Perseus called from his high perch. "Incoming Venti, Gryphon, and dragons!"

"Crap!" said Leo.

Jason Grace looked to where Perseus was looking. He spotted the dragons, venti, and gryphon. There were seventy in all. As for the dragons, there were a lot of them but they were very small in comparison to Festus, Peleus, and the dragon Frank fought the other day. This was doable, they were killable.

"Come on Thalia let's go!" he yelled.

He sprinted across the deck towards the railing. Before he jumped over the side, a son of Vulcan threw him a gladius, which he caught. Thalia and Perseus were right behind him. Once all three were over the railing, they caught the current of the wind and flew off to intercept the incoming winged beast. A squadron of Riders lead by Butch, Hazel, and Frank (in eagle form) joined them.

"Do we send in the ground troops?" Hercules asked the original Jason.

"Not yet," Jason told him. "We deal with this airborne threat and soften up the ground enemy a little more. We don't want to take any chances."

Hercules nodded and the two looked off into the distance to monitor the battle.

* * *

><p>The cannons continued to barrage the ground resistance who, after losing their turrets, offered little response to begin with. All their turrets were destroyed and a few catapults remained. The sky battle was the intense aspect. Bellerophon and Pegasus weaved through the enemy air-units like they were wind themselves. Bellerophon fired arrows with great accuracy even though he sat on Pegasus' back and the wind stung in his eyes. Venti exploded and Gryphon dropped. A dragon tried to snap at him but he rolled out of the way, drew his spear, and thrusted into the creatures soft belly. The giant lizard exploded into a million pieces. Bellerophon flew Pegasus at top speeds, his spear level to the ground, and it's tip slicing through monsters. He threw arrows like throwing knives as he passed by monsters. Columns of fire breathe would try to engulf him which he dogged. Lightning bolts were shot at him but were deflected with his spear. Claws tried to grab at him which were hacked off.<p>

Perseus was back to back with Jason Grace. Jason cut away with his gladius and Perseus his adamantine sword. Thalia kept targets away with her bow and whenever a monster got too close she would draw her hunting knives. Hazel slashed away with her spatha and Frank as an eagle gouged out eyes of dragons. Everything was going well. They turned a hopeless battle into a winnable one.

Everything _was_ going well until that flying golden chariot pulled by two golden sun dragons appeared from behind the clouds. The chariot was manned by a women with an elegant face, long dark black hair, a black dress, red fingernails, and tons of jewelry. It was no one other than Medea, the Princess of Colchis and expert sorceress.

"Don't look into those dragon eyes. You'll be paralyzed," the modern Jason shouted and then dodged a column of fire and deflected a lightning bolt from a Venti.

Medea's dragons breathed fire as she threw potion vials like grenades at Riders that tried to attack her. The vials shattered in their faces releasing nauseous gases. Some choked to death, others died instantly, and the unlucky ones disintegrated into dust. Medea cackled wildly as she lobbed potion after potion killing Riders as she went. Bellerophon gritted his teeth in anger as he watched his Riders die. The were the first casualties of the war and the ones who took the most abuse. He wasn't going to stand for it any longer. He dug his heels into the sides of Pegasus and urged him at full speed toward Medea. Medea saw him coming and turned into a cloud of smoke before his arrows could hit her. As Bellerophon got closer, he shouldered his bow, and readied his spear, but he was knocked off balance when Pegasus rolled out of the way of a fire column from one of the sun dragons. When they recovered, Bellerophon flew straight into a potion vial that exploded in his face. A cloud of smoke surrounded his head and filled his lungs. He began to cough and gasp for air, then nothing. He didn't disintegrate, choke to death, or die. It was only a decoy potion, a distraction, a smoke grenade. That's all it was, nothing else.

Bellerophon smirked. "Your dark magic can't work on me witch!" Bellerophon scoffed to Medea but realized in his coughing fit that she had already gone on to the Argo II.

* * *

><p>"It's her!" Hercules shouted in panic.<p>

"I'm aware of it," the original Jason snarled as he spotted that beautiful yet evil face.

"Cover your ears!" Leo ordered everyone while ducking under a Venti. "She'll charm speak you!"

That wasn't Medea's intention though. She steered her chariot above the ship, selected a vial from her satchel, and dropped it onto the ship's deck. As soon as the vile shattered and it's contents emptied; the substance caught fire. Her sun dragons melted a few cannons with their breathe. The children of Hephaestus manning the guns jumped back. Medea flew around the ship with her dragons setting everything in sight on fire. Medea continued to throw more vials which either exploded on impact or ignited into flames.

"Ah," Leo yelped. "She's worse than the Green Goblin!" A fire vial hit him in the chest and lit him on fire but he extinguished the flames with his mind. "First you get my mom killed, you try to kill me and my friends, you burn my ship, and then you try to burn me. YOU HAVE OFFICIALLY GONE TO FAR LADY! TAKE HER OUT! KILL HER!"

"We can't, she's destroyed all of our cannons," Nyssa informed him on the brink of hysteria.

Medea flew around the ship throwing vial after vial like she was having a water balloon fight. Huge fires spread throughout the ship.

"Fire extinguishers," Leo ordered.

They got out the fire extinguishers and began to spray white foam on the flames but it was to no avail. The fire only got bigger and bigger. Leo tried to control the glowing flames with all his will but they were to large and strong. Medea cackled causing him to flinch. He really hated her.

"Hercules, children of the ugly smith god, you cannot stop me," she howled. Then she noticed that familiar and handsome face. "J-j-j-Jason?" Not Jason Grace, it was the original, her Jason. It was the one she fell in love with.

She was distracted for a few seconds and this small time frame allowed the modern Jason and Perseus to land on the backs of her dragons. They began slashing away with their swords. They stabbed, hacked, and cut. The dragons roared in rage as blood spurted from between their scales.

"STOP!" Medea shouted at them using charm speak.

The two looked up at her and stopped. They didn't know why, they just did, they had to listen to her.

"GET OFF!"

The two nodded dumbly and jumped of the dragons and fell to their deaths. Luckily, Butch and Hazel caught them and flew them to safety. Medea shook her head violently knocking thoughts of Jason out of her mind. She resumed her attack. Her presence distracted the children of Hephaestus/Vulcan away from the other dragons, gryphon, and venti which allowed them to come in and start making a mess all on their own. They snatched up a couple sons of Vulcan and a few daughters of Hephaestus. They screamed in terror as they were lifted into the sky and dropped to the ground bellow. The venti fired lightning bolts at anything in sight and the dragons lit everything on fire. The ship began to lose altitude.

The Argo II became a raging inferno.

"SAVE THEM!" Bellerophon ordered his Riders. "GET THEM OUT OF THERE!" He fired an arrow at Medea but he missed by inches.

"All systems failure," said a robotic female voice over the ship's PA system.

"Shut up!" screamed Leo as he ran to the controls at the helm. He scrambled around panically. He ripped out wires and reconnected them, he banged away with his hammer, and screwed with a screwdriver. His hands were a blur as he worked. He picked up the Wii-motes and windmilled his arms like an idiot. He _had_ to save the Argo II, he _was_ going to save it.

Riders began to land and pick up as many survivors as they could.

"Leo, we have to abandon ship!" Jake Mason screamed in his ear over the roar of the fire.

Leo shook his head, "No!"

"Leo!"

"NO!" Leo screamed. "You guys go. I'll stay here."

"What are you doing?" Nyssa screamed back into his face. "This isn't the fourteenth century. The captain doesn't have to go down with his ship. This is suicide Leo!"

"NO! I'm staying and that's final!"

"You're going to have to realize sooner or later that not everything can be fixed!" Nyssa shouted as she climbed on to a Pegasus. The rest of their siblings followed. They left Leo by himself dumbfounded, speechless, and hopelessly trying to fix a lost cause.

* * *

><p>"Hercules, throw me!" the original Jason yelled.<p>

"What?"

"You get away with Bellerophon. I'll take care of Medea," Jason said courageously. "If we don't now, she'll follow the others back to the main force, and who knows what sort of damage she'll do!"

"You're crazy! You'll die!"

"I die here, I die over there, and I died a three-thousand years ago! This is my fate and I'm trying to set things right!" Jason said grabbing him by both shoulders and shaking him.

Hercules gulped. He was supposed to be the bravest one out of all The Heroes of Old, but at that moment, his very knees were shaking. He felt like a coward but he knew what he was feeling wasn't cowardice. This was compassion for his fellow Argonaut, a comrade, a brother in arms. Hercules nodded and picked Jason up with both hands and prepared to throw him like a spear. He took aim at Medea's chariot. Jason drew his sword.

"Good luck," Hercules whispered which was somehow audible over the roar of the flames.

"Yeah, yeah, good luck and the rest! NOW THROW ME GODS DAMN IT!"

Hercules let out a mighty roar and hurled Jason with all his might. There was no time to watch the results of his throw. He jumped behind Bellerophon aboard Pegasus and together they took off into the air. They left the Argo II behind them which was burning to ashes.

* * *

><p>"All systems failure," the robot lady voiced again.<p>

"I know, I know," Leo said irritated as he fiddled with some wires. "Why does everything I love crash and burn?" he groaned.

"All I have to do is activate the ships sprinklers and maintain altitude! Is that that so much to ask for, no, actually it's quite freaking simple! Now fix yourself! FIX YOURSELF, DAMN YOU!"

The flames surrounded him. He felt it's heat but it didn't burn, that was impossible, but he still sweated profusely, and he was constantly wiping his face as he worked. The tool in his hand caught fire and melted. That was his last one and there was no time to wait for his tool belt to recharge. The ship needed to be fixed immediately.

"NO! NO! NO!"

"Goodbye," the robotic lady said this time and her voice whirred as it slowly drained itself of life.

"SCREW YOU!" Leo screamed at her.

The Argo II was fully immersed in flame. The ship that took him eight months to build and now it was burning. The project he put blood, sweat, and tears into was on fire. His greatest creation was enveloped in flames, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. He could only sit helplessly in a raging inferno. He wasn't allowed the privilege to be burned alive to save himself of the shame. Controlling fire wasn't a gift, it was a curse.

"WHY?" he screamed to the sky hoping any god would answer. "DAD? ZEUS? HERA?"

No reply. The ship was now plummeting to the ground with nothing stopping it. Leo sank to his knees and sobbed into his hands.

Then he sucked in all his sorrow which was replaced with anger and bravery. Leo took one final breathe and he knew there was only one thing left to do. "If I'm going down, I'm taking as many of sons of bitches with me!" He said it with determination, accepting his fate. He had a crazy idea-yes, most of his ideas are crazy, but the one he had at that moment took the cake.

Leo closed his eyes and concentrated on the fire around him. It was harder than he expected. There was a lot and he had never tried to manipulate this much at one time. Leo felt a tug in his stomach and heard air whooshing around his ears. The flames around him grew bigger. He felt the ship lurch and begin to descend even faster than before. Leo gritted his teeth and moaned as he forced the flames to grow larger and larger. If this wasn't a dire situation, it would have been comical because he probably looked as if he was constipated. He used the flames to accelerate the ship faster and faster towards the ground. Leo's world crumbled and fell around him. This was it.

Earth below him...drifting...falling...

_To storm or fire, the world must fall._

There was a loud crashing sound, Leo lurched forward from where he sat, there was an explosion, and then blackness.

* * *

><p>Hercules's throw could't have been more perfect. Jason soared through the air in a perfectly straight line that was dead on with his target. As he approached the chariot the two sun dragons opened their mouths to burn him. They were fast but not fast enough. Jason swung his sword with all his might. He felt the blade tear through flesh, then it struck bone, crushed through the bone, cut through more flesh, and came out on the other side. In summary; one dragon decapitated. The weight of the headless dragon pulled the chariot downward and caused it rapidly lose altitude. Jason landed the back of the other dragon. He gripped on to the scales and used them as handholds. He hacked away with his sword against the dragon's hide causing it to groan as they descended even lower. Jason climbed up the scales hacking away each time he advanced. He slowly made his way to Medea's chariot. The wind stung his eyes as the chariot sunk lower and lower out of the sky. Jason reached the dragon's tail and leapt from it onto the chariot.<p>

"AH!" Medea squealed as Jason collided with her.

The two wrestled for dominance. She was stronger than she looked. She tried to open her mouth to charm speak him but she found his hand over her mouth. She tried smashing a vial over his head but he knocked it out of her hands before she could do so. She tried clawing at his face with her nails but he caught her hand inches away from his nose. He could smell the poison on her nails. Suddenly the dragon crash landed and the two of them were bucked out of the chariot and sent flying to space.

Jason hit the rocky ground hard while rolling awkwardly. After a few seconds of tumbling over sharp rocks, he stopped. He looked up to the blue sky and coughed. He laid there for a few seconds with the world spinning around him but eventually he got to his feet groaning. He looked around him and saw the monster army slowly marching toward him. In the distance he saw a giant fireball fall from the sky and land into a section of the monsters. There was a massive explosion and a five-hundred monster burst into dust. The shock wave of the explosion knocked Jason off his feet and onto his back. He stood up slowly with his ear ringing. The monster army was knocked to their feet as well and a good chunk of them were dead. They got back up and resumed to slowly march toward Jason. He was to dazed to care. Jason shook his head and tried to figure out what just happened. After a few moments of trying to organize his thoughts, he realized that giant fireball was the Argo II, which now laid in flaming ruins. If he wasn't so disorientated he would have actually got to his knees and start to start sob.

Instead, he stumbled around in the dirt looking for his sword, he search for something real he could cling on to. Was he in a dream? He found the hilt of weapon and slowly wrapped his fingers around the familiar leather grip. He pulled the sword of the dirt and stumbled some more till he came across the carcasses of two sun dragons. He limped past the bodies and found a beautiful women laying on her back, dressed in black, plenty of jewelry, it was Medea.

Jason scrambled forward and fell to his knees beside her, dropping his sword with a clang. He began to stroke her forehead, he didn't care that she had just tried to kill him and she destroyed the Argo II. She looked in pain. Her eyes cracked opened and she screamed in agony. A rock fragment was buried within her chest causing blood to seep out of the wound.

Their eyes met. "Jason," she managed to whisper short of breathe.

"Oh, Medea," he said gently. "What have you done?" He was referring to all her past exploits. He wasn't accusing her though. He took more of a kinder tone that a mother would take when lecturing her children.

"I know," she sobbed. "I'm sorry!" she wailed. "I'm a terrible person!"

"Sh, sh," he said taking her weak body into his arms and cradling her. "You're not a bad person, I am. You only did the things you did because I came along and corrupted you. It was my fault not yours."

"No! You don't understand! You haven't seen the things that I've done!" she choked. "When I look back on them, it scares me."

Jason continued to hold Medea. She took in a deep breathe which made her wince in pain. She was dying and there was nothing Jason could do. He looked her over. Earlier she looked like an evil witch but now she looked twenty years younger and twenty times more beautiful. It was like the first time they met.

"Jason listen," she gasped. "I don't have much time so let me speak," she was short of breathe.

Jason shook his head. "I can get you help!"

"Jason, listen! I have done terrible things." Her voice was raspy and she had to pause between each word. "I am going to the place where bad men go and Jason I don't want you to do anything to get me. Leave me where I am." Jason opened his mouth to protest. "I accept my fate, my role. I am taking responsibility for my actions and I realized who I am, I'm the bad guy."

"I-d-don't-"

"Take this vial," she gulped in air while saying it. She handed it to Jason and he took it. "It will set off the greek fire in that undetonated battering ram. All you have to do is break it. Help me redeem myself Jason."

"Medea, no! I can get you a medic or something. I can save you!"

"Jason, you all ready have," she whispered raising her hand weakly to his cheek and stroked it. She shook her head. "Tell Leo I'm sorry...for everything. I don't expect him to accept my apology but I mean what I say."

The two looked into each others eyes for what seemed like eternity. She wore a weak smile on her face. "I love you Jason," she whispered with her last breathe.

Jason fought back a sob and gently lowered her limp body to the ground. He looked at her face and eyes one last time. The life faded from her pupils but so did the evil.

"I am so sorry Medea." He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. He gently closed her eyelids. It didn't look like she was dead, she was only sleeping peacefully.

"I love you."

Jason slowly stood to his feet and picked up his sword. He turned to the ever approaching monster army. They were taking their time, but so was he. He twirled his sword experimentally and studied the vial of potion in his hand. The liquid was a neon green color that glowed like a fluorescent light. Jason took a deep breathe and closed his eyes; summoning all the strength, courage, and rage he had. This was Medea's final wish, an act of redemption, and he would see it through. He scanned the ranks of monsters that continued to advance on him. He spotted the abandoned battering ram; it only a hundred feet away. All he had to do was fight his way there.

Jason raised his sword in front of his face and walked to met the incoming monster. They saw him and snarled in response. Jason broke into a steady jog that lead to a dead on sprint. He let out a mighty roar and charged the army of monsters with sword in one hand and potion in the other. He deflected their spears and slammed his body into the mass of disgusting monster bodies. He slashed left and right with his sword. Medea's death had turned him into a mad man. He slashed and hacked his way through the Earthborn. Left and right he stabbed into cyclops. He kicked, spat, bit, and screamed. He decapitated dracaena, he impaled Hellhounds, mutilated telekhine, dismembered Earthborn, skewered Laistroygian, and cut Empousai. He rolled and leapt through monsters and dodged arrow volleys. He was unstoppable. He felt an arrow slam into his chest but he ignored it. A sword slashed at his inner leg but he didn't feel it. A club bonked him on the head but he remained standing and he fought back with blows of his own.

He finally reached his destination. The battering ram stood only a few yards away from him, but it was blocked by old enemies. Twelve Skeleton warriors, armed with swords and shields, intercept his path. The skeletons jaws chattered away as they pointed at him. The skeletons charged forward and Jason stepped to met them. His sword turned into a deadly arc of destruction as he whirled it around him like a defensive shield as he walked toward the ram. The skeletons were chopped into bits. It didn't matter if they put themselves back together because each time they stood back up to face him, they found a sword slashing them up again.

Jason was five feet away from his target when a skeleton managed to get through his defense and stabbed it's sword into Jason's stomach. Jason feel to his knees as he clenched his gut now gushing blood. The skeletons stepped back. The fight was over. Jason was covered in gashes all over his body, he had three arrows in him, and he had already lost a lot of blood. The skeletons ignored him and focused on their next target, the rest of the Argonauts across the plane.

"Hey," called Jason. "We're not done yet."

Skeleton Warriors weren't supposed to have any emotions but for a second it seemed like they were astonished that Jason was still alive. Jason began to slowly crawl forward on all fours, slowly making his way to the battering ram. The skeletons stepped forward and all twelve of them began to stab down on him with their array of weapons. They stabbed him like he was a pin cushion. They stabbed till he finally stopped moving. There was three dozen bleeding holes in the fallen hero. The skeletons determined he was finally dead and stepped away. He was so close yet so far.

Jason began to laugh and blood spurted from his mouth. He laughed like a maniac. He laughed for the Argo II, he laughed for his kin, he laughed for Medea, and he laughed for all he was worth. The skeletons watched him silently.

With all the strength he had left he screamed, "FOR MEDEA!"

He threw the neon vial and it shattered against the ram, it's contents spilling all over the place. There was a white light and then nothing.

* * *

><p>"WHAT THE HADES IS GOING ON OUT THERE?" Achilles screamed at the returning Argonauts. He was referring to the Argo II, or what was left of it.<p>

Nyssa wiped the tears from her eyes and nudged past Achilles ignoring him. The others did the same. Achilles studied each one of their faces. They all looked exhausted, tired, and covered in soot. Bellerophon was the last to approach.

"Medea, dragons, fire!" Bellerophon sputtered.

"Slow down, what happened?" Achilles said changing his tone to a gentler one.

"You didn't see it?" Bellerophon asked in disbelief.

Achilles did but he didn't believe it.

"The Argo II is gone! Most of my Riders are dead! Leo Valdez is dead!" Bellerophon screamed.

Piper started to cry and she buried her head into Jason Grace's chest. All the Argonauts within ear shot began to murmur.

"What was that second explosion? It looked as if the last battering ram detonated?" Achilles pondered.

Bellerophon shook his head. "You're not even going to mention Valdez?" He asked in offended amazement.

"You said he is dead. There is nothing we can do for him now!" snapped Achilles. "Wait, where's Jason, the original?"

"I saw him," Odysseus choked. "From the hill, he was amazing, killing monsters left and right, he set off the last battering ram with a potion he got from Medea. He's dead."

"Jason is dead!" Echoed throughout the Argonauts.

Before those words could even sink in, someone yelled, "Reinforcements!"

It was true most of the monster were wiped out from the three explosions: the EMP, the Argo II, and the final battering ram. However, more monsters came into sight. There were thousands of them. The Argonauts even picked out a few gigantic drakons slithering toward them. Leading the way was an evil snake women riding a five head Hydra; it was Echidna. She was cackling like a witch. She was backed by four more Hydra, a pack of two-headed dogs, a clone of Cerberus, a clan of Nemean Lions, and two Chimeras. Geryon was beside her riding a chariot pulled by man-eating horses.

That was the final straw, the destruction of the Argo II, the death of Leo, the death of Jason, and now Echidna and Geryon, this was too much to handle. Slowly, an uproar broke out and people began to argue. Everything that they had accomplished had just been taken away from them in one fell swoop. All their confidence was in that ship and it was gone, blown to Kingdom Come. Also, two of their best Argonauts were dead.

"HEY!" Tyler yelled trying to get everyones attention. "HEY!"

Slowly the outburst died down. They all looked surprised to see Tyler was standing in front of them commanding their attention. What was even more surprising was his appearance. He had a clean haircut, he wore a Festus shield on one arm, and he even donned Argonaut armor. He looked like a true warrior.

"LISTEN TO ME!" Tyler screamed with confidence. "WHO ARE YOU TO BITCH OUT AT THE LAST SECOND LIKE THIS?"

No reply.

"Seriously, are you Argonauts? Because right now I see a bunch of babies! Jason and Leo are prime examples of true Argonauts! Even in the afterlife they will still be Argonauts! Live together, fight together, die together, right?"

There were a few nods within the crowd.

"Look, we may have lost our ship but we still took out a large part of their army, machines, and defenses. Besides, the Argo II is not who we are. Being a crew member of the Argo doesn't make you an Argonaut. Being an Argonaut makes the Argo. If we give up now the spirit of the Argo, the Argo II, and the Argonauts will die forever."

Tyler scanned the faces seeing his words embedding in their minds. "We will prevail. We are warriors who fight to the end, just like Jason and Leo. They would want us to fight to the end!"

"Yeah," a few Argonauts agreed.

"I was under the impression that there are seven-hundred battle ready Argonauts standing before me, prove it! Prove it to Jason and Leo!"

"AHOO!" Leonidas roared.

"AHOO!" The Argonauts pounded on their shields.

"What I'm going to do is run out there and face the enemy head on. Who's with me?"

"AHOO!" Two more shield beats.

"Fight for Leo!"

"AHOO!" Another two shield beats.

"Fight for Jason!"

"AHOO!" Again, the shields were pounded twice.

"FIGHT FOR THE ARGONAUTS!"

"AHOO! AHOO!" The Argonauts began to beat their weapons to their shields erratically.

"NOW! LET'S GO!" Tyler screamed. "FOR JASON AND FOR LEO!"

"FOR JASON AND LEO!"

Tyler turned around and raced toward the army of monster marching towards him. He heard the thunder of footsteps of his fellow Argonauts behind him. He heard the twang of the bow strings from the archers and the arrows streak past him. As Tyler got closer to colliding with the enemy, he raised his trench knife, and let out a blood curling scream. He realized his true power. The true gift that his mother gave him. It wasn't being a vicious psycho, it was the power to rally those around him to fight to the end...

...And the end that Tyler saw was victory.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	22. Live Together

Tyler looked to his left to find Percy riding Mrs. O'Leary next to him. Tyler looked to his right to find Frank as an elephant bounding next to him. Tyler glanced behind him to see all the Argonauts sprinting after him. Tyler looked ahead to see thousands of monsters of every shape, size and form, hailing from every land and clime awaiting his arrival. In the distance he saw the looming shapes of the Atlas Mountains and the outline of dragons, drakons, and Hydra. The monsters hunched down to their knees awaiting his arrival and licked their lips hungrily.

When Tyler was two feet away from his target he let loose a roar and leapt to his feet, leaving the ground, and soared through the air as if he was a falcon. Time seemed to slow around him as he moved like a bullet and everything moved in slow motion. The monsters looked up at him with awed expressions as they watched him soar over their heads. He cleared the first two front ranks and then crashed into a group of Empousai. He immediately started slashing away with his trench knife. He moved to and fro as he bashed with his shield and stabbed with his knife. He ducked under sword blades and came up swinging. Monsters exploded in the tens. Bronze dust rained as his fellow Argonauts joined him in the carnage. Monsters dropped like stones in free fall. The Argonauts may have been outnumbered five to one but they fought with the force of ten-thousand warriors. Thee spearmen skewered through masses of bodies, the sword wielders sliced through flesh, and the archers fired with pin-point accuracy. The deaths of Leo and Jason fresh in their minds allowed the Argonaut to fight with the ferociousness they needed to survive.

Achilles accompanied by Clarisse and the Spartans charged forward with their shields in front of them, acting like bulldozers. Bellerophon and his Riders rained death from the sky. Hercules held a cyclops in one hand and his club in the other and swung both of them wildly as he sent monsters soaring to space. Odysseus and his archers waded through the ocean of monsters firing arrows at will. Perseus hovered above the enemy decapitating monsters with his pale green swords as he went. Theseus wore his shield on his back, which was pierced with arrows, making him look like a hedgehog, a deadly and vicious hedgehog for that matter, as he twirled his sword and cudgel.

The Argonauts were dominating the battle field until Echidna and her children joined in. The Nemean Lions pounced on a group of unprepared satyrs and had a hearty breakfast. The evil Cerberus clone used it's three heads to snatch up any unsuspecting Argonauts. The drakons slithered through the ranks of Argonauts crushing them, breathing acid, and freezing them with paralyzing gazes. The dragons, the venti, and the gryphon spread chaos among the Riders as the two forces fought in aerial combat. Many Riders were unsaddled and feel out of the sky. The twin Chimeras breathed fire and melted shields. Out of all the monster, the Hydras did the most damage. Their multiple heads flailed around as they sent Argonauts flying. They spit acid causing flesh to burn. Accidentally, the Argonauts would cut off the beasts' heads and thus creating more. There was a group of Cyclops wielding two handed swords who deliberately cut off Hydra heads in order to create more and more of them.

"Don't cut off the heads!" Hercules ordered.

"Shoot them in the brain!" Odysseus shouted to the archers while aiming for the eyes of the Hydra.

The Argonauts began to falter as the indestructible lions, the fire breathing Chimera, the giant three-headed dog, the slithering reptiles, and the never ending heads of the Hydra pushed them back. Argonauts were flung into the air, eaten, mauled, or burnt to a crisp. Their initial momentum was lost, the rage was gone, confidence depleted, and panic began to ensue.

"Flee demigods!" Echidna cackled from atop her perch from the biggest Hydra. "Revenge is sweet! Never shall I bow to a god again! Hail Gaea!"

"Shut up!" Odysseus hollered as he fired an arrow at the plump snake woman. He cursed as he watched his arrow miss by centimeters. "Of course I miss now!" he wailed sarcastically. Odysseus fired again only to find that his arrow striking the Hydra instead of her. "Damn!" Odysseus notched in another arrow was distracted when a two headed dog lunged for him. He barley had time to put the dog down and before he could refocus on Echidna, his attention was diverted to more monsters who rushed him.

"No retreat!" Leonidas bellow as he thrusted his sword in the maw of a Nemean Lion that tried to tackle him.

"We're going to have to if we don't take out the Children of Echidna and their duplicates!" Achilles yelled over the screams of dracaena he had just impaled with his spear.

"I'll take care of them!" Hercules shouted, waiting for no response. He broke into a sprint, barreling through monsters as her ran.

"Right behind you!" said Perseus.

"Wait up," added Percy.

The trio made their way through cyclops, Earthborn, Laistroygian, and Hellhounds. A Nemean Lion jumped in front of them but Hercules gripped it's jaw and cracked it open allowing Perseus and Percy to ram their swords up the roof of it's mouth. The gigantic lion exploded into dust leaving it's pelt behind. The three ignored it though and ran on. Percy swatted away Orthus, the two head dog belonging to Geryon, who pounced at him. When the dog pounced again, Percy swung Riptide killing the monsters. As for, Geryon, he was nowhere in sight but there was no time to ponder on his location. Hercules picked up a cyclops and used it like a battering ram as he plowed through the ocean of monsters creating a makeshift pathway. Perseus used his Hermes Boots to flutter above them and protect them from dragons, venti, and gryphon.

The three finally made it to a squad of Argonauts being pinned down by the Hydra that Echidna was riding. Perseus threw his shield like a frisbee at the unsuspecting snake woman. It zoomed through air, on target, no doubt about missing the target. From out of nowhere the evil Cerberus snatched it out of the air and spit it on the ground. It looked to the trio and then bounded toward them.

"I'll take care of this oversized mutt," said Perseus. "You two get rid of the fat hag."

Hercules and Percy nodded, rolled out of the way of the charging Cerberus, left Perseus to deal with it, and ran to do battle with Echidna's hydra.

Perseus shot off into the air and attacked the dog. Perseus landed on it's middle head. The ones on the left and right snapped at him. Just before they made contact Perseus jumped out of the way. The two outer heads sunk their teeth into their middle brother instead of Perseus. That was all it took for them to start fighting each other. The three mouths full of razor sharp teeth began bitting and barking at one another, distracted from their real enemy. While they were busy tearing each other apart, Perseus moved in with his sword and buried it hilt deep into the skull of the middle head, and then swung his sword twice decapitating the remaining two heads. Before the body exploded, Perseus backflipped off the middle head and landed on to the ground safely. He found his shield covered in dog drool, hefted it onto his arm, readjusted the grip on his sword, and headed off to aid Percy and Hercules.

He found them in an intense brawl with the great Hydra. Hercules was beating away with his club trying to keep the multiple Hydra heads at bay while Percy rolled back in forth, blocked acid spit with his shield, and tried his best to not cut off any heads with his sword. They were on the defense trying to find away to take care of the beast without creating more heads and getting eaten at the same time. It was only up to them due to the fact that their allies were preoccupied with other enemies. Perseus joined them and tried to help in anyway he could. He only functioned as a distraction, nothing more. They were only preventing the inevitable and Echidna knew this. She cackled in delight.

"The three heroes that have caused me the most pain," snarled Echidna, "all together to die!"

To make maters worse, the Hydra she rode was joined by the other Hydras, the Nemean Lions, the two Chimera, and the remainder of the two headed dogs. They were coming to aid their mother. They all growled menacingly at the trio. Hercules charged froward but a Hydra head thwacked him and sent him sky high. He landed hard on a nearby boulder and it looked as if he wouldn't be getting up any time soon. Perseus looked to his unconscious half-brother and ran forward in rage. He was mauled by two Nemean Lions and was forced to take the fight elsewhere as they lead him further away down the battlefield. There was only Percy left. He stepped back slowly as the humungous monsters approached him. He gulped in fear due to his solidarity.

"The youngest will die first!" Echidna hissed delighted. "Last time we met I didn't get the pleasure to watch my son feast on your innards."

"I can't say that I'm sorry," said Percy.

"Die Percy Jackson!" she shouted ordering her children forward.

A glowing sun arrow, shot from behind Percy, whizzed over his head, and nailed Echidna in the shoulder. She lost her balance from her perch atop the Hydra and she feel to the ground.

"Not if we can help it," said Frank with his bow, Oriens, drawn with another sun arrow at the ready.

Frank was accompanied by Hazel riding Arion, Jason Grace, Piper, and Tyler. They joined Percy on either side of him. The Prophecy of Seven members all together, standing united. All of them except Leo.

From the ground Echidna screeched, "Children, protect me!" Her monster children formed a wall in front of her allowing her to slither away to safety.

"I guess it's the five of us against a bunch of them," shrugged Jason. He flipped his gold coin, which he found on the battlefield and was amazingly still intact after being used as an EMP. He caught in Javelin form.

"Isn't that always the situation?" Piper mused.

"We're right behind you Percy," said Hazel who readied her Spatha.

Frank transformed into a dragon, Piper tightened her grip around her knife, Tyler licked his knife, Jason hovered in the air slightly, and Percy banged his shield.

Percy ran forward and let loose a roar. Frank took off into the air and began to breathe fire. Hazel urged Arion forward who took off in flash of light, transforming into a blur. Piper walked forward behind Jason who was calling down lighting strikes. The Monsters soared and rushed to meet them in response. There was yelling screaming, stabbing, the twang off bow strings, roaring, snarling, curses, and all the sounds of battle. Percy cut away with his sword, Jason summoned lightning, Tyler and Piper stabbed with their knives, Frank strafed the monsters with fire, and Hazel rode Arion in circles as she hacked away with her sword. The small group was then joined by the Heroes of Old. Theseus dual-wielded his club and cudgel, Achilles advanced with his spear, Hercules battered with his club, Perseus zoomed all over the place, Odysseus shot with his bow, and Leonidas bashed with his shield. All around them there was death. Monster died as well as Argonauts. Riders feel from the sky but so did the skeletons of dragons. Monster dust was kicked up everywhere and blood splashed the dirt.

Hannibal the Elephant meet his tragic demise when a hail of arrows swelled over him. It took the fire of two dragons and the storm of several Venti to finally topple the giant beast. In rage, Frank whipped out his bow and somehow managed to pick off every single monster that killed one of his greatest friends.

Bellerophon fought like a madman over the limp body of Pegasus who was struck and downed by a lightning bolt from a Venti. Bellerophon whirled his lead tipped spear over his head as he defended against waves of monsters.

"Don't you dare touch him!" he snarled as he stabbed a Hellhound that took a bite out of the dead Pegasus.

Arrows pierced Bellerophon's body and swords nicked his flesh but nothing could down him. His rage was too strong. Even when his old enemy, the Chimera and it's clone breathed fire at him, he continued to fight. He let loose a volley of arrows at the large goat/lion/snake creatures till he had no more ammo in his quiver. He charged forward with his spear and impaled the first one in the mouth and pushed on the shaft till he could not anymore. The Chimera let out a muffled roar then exploded. The second one clawed at Bellerophon's unprotected back. Bellerophon let loose a yelp of pain but retaliated by jumping onto this Chimera's back and stabbed it in the back of it's head with his spear. It roared in anger and began to buck in order to throw him off. The snake tail whipped up to bite at him but Bellerophon caught it before it could and bit it's head off. The Chimera roared again and continued to buck, causing Bellerophon to snap his spear in half from gripping too tightly. Bellerophon took the broken end of the shaft and once again stabbed down into the demonic creature's head. The monster screamed and let loose a column of fire that doused a score of centaur, lighting them on fire. The monster exploded and Bellerophon fell to the ground. He crawled over to Pegasus and rolled to his back. He laid next to the limp body of his old friend. He closed his eyes and he slowly felt the blood leak from his open wounds and the life drain from his body. Slowly the comrades embraced death

The fight with the Hydras wasn't going very well. Although most of the Nemean Lions were destroyed, along with the two-headed dogs, and both the chimera, and Cerberus, the Hydras still remained. The Argonauts tried their best to not cut off any heads but there was a few accidents and in the end every Hydra had at least a dozen heads each.

"We need fire!" shouted Hercules.

Frank breathed fire on any headless stubs but there were too many of them and not enough of him to cauterize them in time. More heads were reforming than he could stop.

"We're a little short on that!" replied Percy as he rolled out of the way of chomping Hydra jaws and then blocked acid spit with his shield.

Jason decapitated one of the Hydra heads and called lightning down on it's stump. Nothing happened as two more heads emerged from it.

"Lightning isn't working either!" he told the others. "Also, I made two more heads, sorry!"

All hope seemed to be lost as the Hydras were joined by it's drakon cousins that slithered into the fray. The Argonauts ran forward to meet them but their scales were think and conventional weapons were useless. A good number of the Argonauts laid dead, Bellerophon was dead, many were injured, and they were exhausted. Not to mention the fact there was still a couple thousand cyclops, centaur, laistroygian, telekhine, dracaena, and empousai left. The Argonauts needed a miracle. Many of them prayed to as many of the god they could think of.

Their prayers were answered when a, "WHOO!" echoed through the Atlas Mountains.

From out of nowhere a fire bolt rocketed out of the clouds and swooped over a hundred monsters. The fire bolt took the shape of a human and from it's hands it let out columns of fire. Dozens of monsters were vaporized instantly.

"What the-" Jason uttered in awe.

The fire bolt came to the aid of two helpless Argonauts pinned by a pack of Earthborn. Then it held up it's hands and lit the two giants up like roman candles.

"Did someone order two large toasted Earthborn?" the fire bolt asked in a familiar voice.

The fire bolt touched it's feet to the ground and extinguished it's flames. It revealed it's true form. Standing before them was a curly headed Latino Santa Clause Elf with a tool belt strapped around his waist. The boy wore a smirk and his eyes twinkled.

"Leo," gasped Piper.

"Pretty cool huh?" Leo blurted before anyone else could speak. He talked at a million words per minute. "You thought I was all dead, right? Well, I'll tell you what happened. Medea lit the ship on fire and I was like, 'ah,' and I tried to fix it. Everyone was like, 'no, you can't man, you're gonna die,' and I'm like, 'no, I can' but really I couldn't and then I thought I was dead meat for sure. I tried to use fire to my advantage and make the ship's explosion even bigger, which I did, but just before the ship crashed my life flashed before my eyes. Then I had this weird vision of my dad telling my all my abilities and guess what? I'M THE MOTHER FLIPPIN' HUMAN TORCH! I can shoot fireballs, I can fly, just like Jason, you're not the only one bro! I flew off the ship before it crashed. It took me awhile for me to get here because I sort of flew to Olympus or something and the Gods told me a bunch of things about the war and this ILH group and some more stuff. And my dad even promised to rebuild Festus. Oh, it's so awesome! I'll tell you guys all about it later. But isn't all this FREAKIN' INCREDIBLE!"

Most Argonauts were too busy fighting for their lives to notice, others were just stunned from utter surprise, some were delighted, and others were eager to get back to the fight, yet thrilled to have Leo back.

"Leo were really glad you're not dead and all but we kind have a problem," said Jason urgently.

"What?" Leo asked dumbly. Then he looked at the Hydras. "Crap, you mean ugly over there! Yeah I can do this, no problem, fire, I got this." He was jumping on his toes and shaking his hands like he was about to run a mile. "You might want to stand back," he said gesturing for Thalia to step away.

Then he roared, "FLAME ON!"

Suddenly Leo's entire body was engulfed in flames. He jumped into the air and rocketed off toward the Hydra with Jason and Frank flying after him. Perseus, now running because he lost his Hermes boots after his fight with the Nemean Lions, followed them. He was accompanied by Percy and Theseus. The rest of the Argonauts who weren't already occupied charged forward after them. They began hacking away at any Hydra head that they could sink their blades into. The Hydra screamed in pain. Before the giant lizards could regrow their lost heads, Leo set fire to the stumps, cauterizing the wounds, preventing any heads' ability to regrow. Within moments the Hydras exploded into dust. All of them were eliminated allowing the Argonauts to focus their attention on other matters.

Both the Argonauts and the monster noticed the shift in the battle. The Argonauts took advantage of this moment and surged forward causing the monsters to skirt away from them. All the children of Echidna were wiped out thus fueling the Argonauts to fight harder and the monsters to cower. The satyr Argonauts played their pan flutes summoning vines that exploded from the ground which wrapped themselves around drakons and pinned them. This enabled the spearmen to climb up on the giant reptiles and stab away. Argonauts swords flashed, their bows twanged, their shields battered, and their spears rammed.

The monsters were left under the leadership of Geryon who wasn't a military leader of any sorts. He gave out orders awkwardly and his confidence faltered as the Argonauts continued to advance. The monsters were left unorganized and confused and whenever they did receive an order, it was one that left them unprotected, or sent them to their deaths.

"My Lord, what shall we do?" A dracaena hissed in terror as the Argonauts were getting closer and closer to their position.

"Kill them all!" screamed Echidna in rage. "VENGEANCE SHALL BE MI-" Her sentence was cut short when three arrows shot by Odysseus, Will, and Frank smacked into her forehead, causing her to explode into dust.

"We are being slaughtered!" whined the dracaena.

"I'M A BUSINESSMAN! NOT A GODS DAMN GENERAL!" Geryon screamed in frustration with his Texan accent.

"What are your orders My Lord?"

"RETREAT!" Geryon screamed in conclusion.

The monsters were grateful for the order and they fled in terror as they ran away from the progressing Argonaut army. The monsters fought each other as they squeezed through the entrance of valley. Geryon's retreat was not fast enough because he was ripped out of his chariot by two meaty paws. They belonged to an old business rival, Hercules. Before Geryon could even scream in terror, Hercules ripped him in half, length wise, making his three torso's useless. The three toro giant exploded into dust.

His servant Euyrtion, a demigod and son of Ares, didn't even bother to fight at the death of his master. He actually joined the ranks of the Argonauts.

"I'm done serving that greedy demon. I'm with you," he said hefting his giant sword.

"Forward!" Hercules urged his fellow Argonauts.

The Argonauts ran forward after the monsters who were squeezing themselves through a crack between two mountains severing as the entrance too the Valley of Death's Doors. Achilles spearheaded the way through the narrow crevice and lead the Argonauts into a massive wide valley. Only a few hundred yards in front of them stood Death's Doors. The Argonauts expected it to be a grand gateway that lead into the Underworld but instead it was merely plain wooden double-doors that blocked the entrance to a cave that jutted out from the ground. There was no doubt about it though, that was the Doors of Death and they were cracked wide open, revealing a swirling black portal. The Argonauts had finally made it. They secured a beachhead at the Battle of the Cliff, pushed through New Thermopylae, and suffered over two-hundred casualties to get their destination, but they had finally reached their goal. They would shut the doors and mourn the dead later. First, they had a mission, a quest, to complete.

The remaining five hundred Argonauts rushed into the valley excitedly only to find themselves surrounded by thousands of thousands of weapons trained on them. The forces that surrounded them included the Persian king Xerxes and one-thousand of his Persian Immortal Guard, the ones who almost took over all of Ancient Greece. Their armament was along the lines of wicker shields, short spears, swords or large daggers, bows and arrows, and underneath their colorful desert robes they wore scaled armor coats.

There was also Hannibal the Conqueror, not the Elephant, bug the very one that brought the demise of the Roman Empire. He was accompanied by one-thousand of Carthaginian warriors. They were armored similar to the Argonauts. Their weapons were mostly Greek like the xiphos and the falcata, but their armor was Roman like.

Then there was Hippias, son of Pesistratos, the tyrant king of Athens accompanied by one-thousand corrupt Spartans. They were carbon cut outs of your typical spartan warrior; hoplon (circular greek shield), xiphos or maikhra, and Spartan armor. They were almost exactly like true Spartans except for the evil aura they emitted.

On top of all that there was still the surviving monsters who were now rearmed and ready to seek revenge on those who made a fool out of them, not to mention that they were still starving and that day's special was demigod and satyr. They licked their lips hungrily. The evil forces formed a ring around the Argonauts allowing no chance of escape.

"PHALANX!" Achilles ordered quickly.

The Argonauts surged together and formed a dome by putting their shields together with their spears poking out of the chinks. The dome was large enough to cover the rest of the Riders and Ms. O'Leary. They were ready for anything, read to fight, ready for death. The men and monsters that surrounded them waited silently for the kill order. The Argonauts held their breath and prepared for battle. There was an odd hush that hung over the Atlas Mountains.

Frank gulped nervously as he recognized the aggressors that surrounded them. "Aren't all these guys mortals? How are we supposed to kill them?"

Hazel gave him an explanation, "When a soul is brought back from the Underworld via dark magic, i.e., Gaea, they bring a piece of Tartarus with them. They can be killed by Celestial Bronze and Imperial Gold just like any other monster."

"Really?" Leo said. "That doesn't worry me. What worries me is how many of them there are."

"Where did they come from?" Octavian wondered.

"I think it's obvious," Reyna said pointing to Death's Doors.

"So close and yet so far," Thalia put in frustrated.

Annabeth reached for Percy's hand. "Stay with me," she whispered into his ear.

"Always," he whispered back into her's and returned her squeeze firmly. He then brushed his lips against hers.

Realization struck the Argonauts as they understood the situation they were in and was going to happen in the next few minutes. They set their jaws with determination and began saying final goodbyes.

Jason looked to Piper next to him, "I love you."

It took a moment for her make out what he had said but when she did she smiled brightly. She met his blue eyes with her color changing ones. She pressed her lips against his and they stayed like that what seemed like eternity. Fireworks exploded in their heads and the world spun around them. Not even their impending deaths could ruin that moment.

Frank pecked Hazel on the lips and smiled. "Not to shabby Ms. Levesque."

"Not shabby at all Mr. Zhang," Hazel smiled back.

"Damn!" curse Leo. "I have no one to kiss. Don't leave me out!"

Mr. O'Leary lapped her huge tongue over his face at his request drenching it in salvia.

Leo wiped the drool off his face. "That was my first kiss," was all he could manage in defeat.

From beside him Reyna stifled a laugh.

"What?" Leo said annoyed.

Shook her head through chuckles. "I would kiss you if you didn't have drool over your face." Her smile faded and her eyes darted around nervously. "This is out of pity of course," she added too quickly.

"I think I got most of it," Leo said excitedly really rubbing his face dry and.

Reyna sighed. "Fine, if we survive you have to promise not to tell anyone."

He felt a bit hurt but he shrugged and said, "I can do that."

Before he could do anything else, Reyna pressed her lips against his. An atomic bomb of satisfaction went off in his head and he almost burst in to flames right then and there. When they broke apart he was left dizzy and his cheeks red.

"What did you think of that?" she asked.

"I-I-I-I," was all he could manage.

"Well, it's been an honor serving with you all," Clarisse grunted cracking her knuckles in anticipation.

"Ditto," Tyler agreed as he flipped his knife between his fingers.

"Aye," the remainder of the Heroes of Old put in.

There was a hushed "Ahoo!" within the Argonauts' Phalanx. A few silents prayer were made and last minute apologies made to those they may have wronged.

Percy had a terrible feeling that they were all going to be slaughtered but the presence of Annabeth at his side made death seem almost tolerable. They weren't going down without a fight and at least he would be in the company of friends.

Live together, fight together, die together.

The Earth seemed to vibrate as giant footsteps echoed throughout the silent mountains. From the ranks of the Axis of Evil emerged two giants. The Argonauts recognized them from the old stories. There was Leon. He was not breed to kill a specific god but instead a hero and that hero was none other than Hercules. The hero who fought in the first Giant War. He stood at twenty-five feet, had reptilian legs like all the other giants, but his waist up took the form of a giant lion, except he had human arms, and he wielded a club the size of a tree. Then there was her. The leader of the wretched bunch. Pallas, who stood at thirty feet, had the standard reptilian legs, her torso was covered in greek armor, and her head was in the form of a goat's which had massive horns protruding from it. She carried a Greek xiphos and circular shield on her arm.

Standing bellow the two giants was thirty Trojan warriors lead by the handsome Prince of Troy, Paris, with his bow slung over his shoulder. Standing at his side and a head taller than him was his brother, Hector. Hector would have been equally as handsome as his brother if not for his scarred body. He was decked out in his full Trojan armor, his sword sheathed at his waist, his shield on one arm, and he leaned on nonchalantly on his spear. He wore an evil grin on his face that was wide enough to be seen through his helmet. His eyes scanned the Argonaut phalanx and when they settled on Achilles his grinned widened.

"ARGONAUTS!" Pallas boomed. Here voice was feminine but it almost sounded like a man's mixed with goat's. "LAY DOWN YOUR WEAPONS!"

Leonidas responded by pounding on his shield twice and roaring, "GIANTS, COME AND GET THEM!"

The Argonauts screamed with all their might for Gaea, the Gods, the spirits, and the world to hear:

"AHOO! AHOO!"

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	23. Kill em' All

Shades of black arrows rained from the sky, blotting out the light of the sun. The five-hundred Argonauts raised their shields in defense. The arrows slammed into the hard metal surfaces with loud clangs. The shields acted like umbrellas as arrows bounced off their faces. The arrow volleys continued as the Argonauts endured the rain storm of projectiles.

"COWARDS!" yelled Leonidas over the patter of the falling arrows.

A few Argonauts went down from stray arrows that were able to squeeze through the chinks in the phalanx but continued to hold. Eventually the whizzing of arrows and the twang of bow strings ceased. Everything went silent, the only thing that could be heard was the heavy breathing of Ms. O'Leary, and the grunts of war elephants.

Pallas turned to Hector and yawned, "I expect no prisoners. Destroy them."

Hector grinned and raised his spear into the air, "FOR GAEA!"

The Axis of Evil drew their weapons, let loose maniacally howls, and charged toward the huddled Argonauts.

"ARGONAUTS!" Achilles yelled.

The Argonauts broke their domed phalanx formation and hunched down onto one knee as they prepared for the collision of the incoming enemy.

Achilles stepped out of the phalanx and faced his Argonauts. "Fight to Death's Doors! Do not stop till you are dead or till those doors are closed. Fight hard and fight fast. If our enemies shall find victory today, at least make them pay for it with a heavy price! Let them know by the bodies you leave in your wake. Wreak havoc my brothers and sisters! It has been an honor serving with all of you!"

"THIS IS THE LAST STAND OF THE ARGONAUTS!" Leonidas roared. "FIGHT HARD FOR THIS DAY SHALL BE REMEMBERED FOR ALL TIME!"

"TO THE LAST SATYR!" Hercules bellowed.

"WE FIGHT!"

"TO THE LAST MORTAL!" Theseus chanted.

"WE FIGHT!"

"TO THE LAST DEMIGOD!" Odysseus shouted.

"WE FIGHT!"

"TO THE LAST ARGONAUT!" Achilles boomed.

"WE FIGHT! WE FIGHT!"

Tyler looked to the clouds and screamed as loud as he could, "KILL EM ALL!"

The enemy forces continued to approach kicking up dust as they charged. The combined force of ten-thousand Carthaginians, evil Spartans, Persian Immortals, and monsters swarmed the five-hundred Argonauts.

As the Argonauts studied their approaching enemies time seemed to slow down. They could make out the steam from the hot breath of the evil looking men that advanced on them. They were twenty feet away, then ten, then five, then there was an explosion of screaming, shouting, yelling, clanging, slashing, hacking, dust, blood, and curses as they slammed into the Argonauts' shield wall. They were met by shield bashes and spear thrust. The Axis of Evil pushed against the Argonaut shields trying to break through but they only found themselves pushed back. They surged on the Argonauts once more but again they found themselves pushed away. The phalanx broke and the Argonauts erupted from the opening. Ms. O'Leary leapt out and started to chomp away with her jaws, she was followed closely by Frank Zhang who was in tiger form, and then Hercules letting loose wild bellows as he swung his club. The Riders took to the sky and rained death. The rest of the Argonauts followed their lead as they hacked left and right with their xiphos and gladius. Monsters exploded and men fell. Monster dust and dark red mortal blood mixed together creating a putrid concoction of death. The Argonauts hacked away with all their fury and might fighting the hardest they had ever fought in their lives knowing this would be their last chance to do so.

The Argonauts fought like wild demons fresh from hell with their weapons becoming blurs in the air. One Argonaut would take on five enemies at a time and if they succumbed to defeat, it would only be after they took multiple wounds, and multiple enemies with them. Frank remembered a quote that he liked from The Art of War by Sun Tzu. It went along the lines of, "When no escape is available, when death is certain, the troops will fight to the bitter end," and that was the Argonauts' plan. They would fight to the last satyr, the last Amazon, the last mortal, the last demigod, to the last sword, spear, arrow, and to the last Argonaut they would fight.

The Carthaginians lead by Hannibal took on the majority of the Roman Argonauts. King Hippias and his evil Spartans took on the majority of the Greeks. The fighting was nothing but bloody. The war elephants stomped on Argonauts but were then brought down by volleys of spears and arrows.

Leonidas and his Spartans broke off from the main force and began to battle with the Persian Immortals. Although the Spartans were detached from the main Argonaut army, they were still a force to be reckoned with as they took on their old enemies. The Spartans put the name, Immortals, to the test as they killed them by the dozens and moved through their ranks. The Spartan's main target was King Xerxes. In the previous life they did not have the chance to exact revenge on the one who threatened their people with slavery and death, but it this one revenge was in their grasp. The Spartans pushed froward with their shields and spears breaking through Immortal wicker shields and deflecting their arrows. Spartans would fall here and there, but even then they continued to wade through the mass of the Persian nations that descended upon them. Spartans continued to fall but so did the enemy and in greater numbers. For every Spartan there was twenty-five Immortals. For one Spartan that died so did twenty-five Immortals.

They Spartans fought on till they reached King Xerxes who sat on his throne atop a war elephant. There may have been only a dozen Spartans left but they still had the spirit of a thousand. Leonidas's second in command dropped to one knee and Leonidas ran up his back like a ramp. Leonidas discarded his shield as he soared through the air with both hands gripping his spear. He moved in slow motion as he gained altitude. He passed over the Elephant and met eyes with the Persian King who wore a horror stricken face at the sight of the flying Spartan. Leonidas crashed into Xerxes and ripped him off his throne. They hit the ground hard with Leonidas on top. Leonidas raised his spear, let out a roar, and buried it deep into the man's chest. Leonidas looked deep into his eyes with fury as he watched the life fade from Xerxes. Several Immortals' spears imbedded themselves into Leonidas's back. He groaned in pain but somehow stood to his feet, grabbed the closest weapon he could, and began hacking away as he became overwhelmed by Persians.

"TO THE KING!" a Spartan yelled and the remainder of the Spartans rushed to their fearless leader's aid.

They fought with all their strength, each one taking hundreds of blows from the enemy, but returning the favor with a hundred deaths. They fought on till they were completely engulfed by a sea of Persians. They fought to their final breathe. The Spartans died doing what they were born to do, breed to do, raised to do, trained to do, and what they lived for. They died knowing vengeance was exacted and they died peacefully.

Percy and Annabeth stood hand in hand as they fought off hordes of monsters and mortals alike. They were trained in the art of killing monsters but mortals, never. It was a new concept to them and one they would've have detested against in different circumstances, but at that moment, survival was the only thing in their minds as they fought with all the strength they had left. Percy swung Annabeth like a whip who slashed away with her knife while Percy hacked with Riptide. They made fighting almost romantic as they cut through Carthaginians, Persians, evil Spartans, and monsters. The duo was joined by Piper and Jason who held the appearance of a King and Queen joining their subjects in one final battle. Soon after, Frank came bounding in as a lion with Hazel next to him riding Arion. From the sky came Leo, completely engulfed in flames, burning anything evil in sight. Reyna and Butch now leading the Riders on top of their Pegasi attacked from above. Thalia had her bow drawn as she shot arrows after arrow. Octavian even did his part as he whirled around with his gladius. A group of satyrs commanded by Grover and Hedge played their reed pipes frantically as they entangled their enemies in vines. Tyler was the last to show up as he twirled his trench knife savagely and danced through enemy ranks; slicing and dicing like a ravenous butcher with a sparkle of glee in his eyes.

The Valley of Death's Doors became a killing field as the Argonauts fought for their lives. Theseus pounded with his cudgel and stabbed with his sword. Perseus was a blur of silver and green with his sword and shield. Odysseus went into a pattern of firing arrows from his bow and then using it as a club to beat back enemies, and using his arrows as daggers to stab advisories. Hercules stomped, punched, and swung with his club while he grappled anything hostile in his reach. He picked up a Carthaginian and threw him into a group of Cyclops.

As Tyler fought he passed by Argonauts being overwhelmed by Persians, or hacked at by Carthaginians, or stomped by war elephants, or ripped apart by Hellhounds. Tyler did his best to save and protect as many as he could but even he was being stretched thin. He couldn't swing his knife as fast as he wanted to and every muscle in his body to ached.

The Giants, Leon, and Pallas stomped through Argonauts, swung their massive weapons, and breathed fire. Argonauts were sent flying into to space, burned to a crisp, or squished to death. They began to cower away while the two giants bellowed in fits of laughter. Hercules and Leo came to the rescue and did the best they could to aid their brothers and sisters. Hercules wrestled with Leon while Leo, as a fire bolt, flew around Pallas. The best they could manage was staying alive and diverting their attention away from the rest of the Argonauts. They would need a god to kill them and they were lacking in one of those.

Achilles was on his own, surrounded by a ring of enemies. He was god-like the way he stabbed with his spear and defended with his shield. He was the master of the hoplite, the Ancient Greek fighting style of spear and shield. The scenery around him faded and he was no longer fighting in the Atlas Mountains but he was in the Trojan War again. It was like he still held the curse of the River Styx. He was invincible as he spun and twirled. Mounds of corpses formed around him as aggressors fell. He was in a dream world. His mind shut down and his instincts took over. He was unstoppable.

Only when he heard a familiar voice that sent chills up his spine did he come back to reality.

"BACK OFF! HE'S MINE!" screamed Hector.

Every Carthaginian, Persian, Trojan, evil Spartan, and monster in the area backed away and formed a ring around Achilles. From within their ranks stepped forward the one and only Hector, Prince of Troy. He stood grinning menacingly with his spear and shield in hand. Without further warning he charged Achilles in a rain of spear thrust and shield bashes. Achilles instincts saved him and he retreated back to safety. Achilles continued to step back as Hector advanced. Achilles thrusted with his spear pushing Hector back, giving Achilles time to catch his breathe.

"Hector," Achilles panted, "you don't want to do this."

"Of course I do, especially after everything you've done!" Hector snarled back.

"What happened to you Hector? You used to be honorable man. I never thought it would be you who would aid Gaea. You are no better than a monster!"

Hector shrieked with laughter. "Achilles, speaking to me about honor, the ruthless warrior who completely disregards human life is giving me, a lecture in honorability? I laugh in his face! I asked, I pleaded, if I was slain you would return my body back to my family! Instead you killed me, tied me by my ankles, and dragged my carcass across the desert for twelve days, and you call me the monster, HA!"

"Hector I'm sorry," tried Achilles, "but I'm a changed man now. I apologize for the things I have done in the past but you must see your evil ways!"

"Well, you're about three-thousand years to late! NOW DIE!" Hector charged forward.

Achilles sighed, "So be it."

Achilles dodged the initial spear thrust and rolled under the shield bash. Achilles got to his feet and attacked Hector's unprotected back with a thrust of his own. Hector parried it with his spear and came back at Achilles who blocked with his shield. For a while the two traded blows and parries trying to break each other's guard. They were equally matched being the greatest warriors of their respective nations. Some say that Achilles only beat Hector in their first confrontation because Achilles had the curse of the River Styx to aid him but now he did not have it. Achilles hoped that Hector was not aware that information.

Hector remained on the offense while Achilles was mostly on defense. Hector circled him as he thrusted with his spear. Achilles parried a few more thrust until he found his opening. Hector stuck for his feet. Achilles jumped out of the way and then stomped down on the shaft of Hector's spear, breaking it in two. While Hector looked at his broken weapon, Achilles rammed him with his shield. Hector reeled backward and fell to the ground. Achilles rushed forward and brought his spear down on Hector. Hector rolled out of the way and kicked Achilles's spear out of his hand. Hector climbed to his feet and drew his sword. He swung it at Achilles who blocked it with his shield. Achilles drew his sword and fired back. The two took turns battering each other's shields with their swords sending vibrations up their arms.

The fight seemed pretty even till an arrow slammed into the heel of Achilles. Achilles feel to his knees and screamed in pain. Hector paused in his attack and began to laugh. Hector looked to where the arrow came from, it was from his brother, Paris. He gave Paris a salute and Paris nodded back while he continued to fire arrows into Argonaut ranks. Hector brought his attention back to Achilles.

"I may not be the one to kill you but at least I still get to enjoy watching you die."

Hector waited for his life long and beyond enemy's death but it did not come. Achilles gripped the arrow lodged in his heel, and with much agony pulled it out. He was not dead, in fact, he was very much alive.

"Hmm," Hector said disappointed, "you lost the curse, but alas it turns out I will be the one to end you." Hector raised his sword.

Achilles tried to stand but immediately a sharp pain shot up his leg and forced him back to the ground. In defeat he crumpled into the dirty. He raised his shield in defense while Hector rained blows with his sword. Achilles felt like his arm was going to detach from it's socket due to the constant banging on his shield. Achilles tried not to focus on the pain in his heel and arm but sill his shield arm faltering. Soon his protecting would be destroyed or Hector would simply move around him and slit his throat. Achilles heard a viscous crack as his shield arm broke. Achilles screamed in pain.

Hector laughed and prepared to deliver the killing stroke.

"STOP!" It was Piper coming to Achilles's rescue. "Drop it!" she said to Hector using charm speak.

Hector paused in his attack and chuckled. "Charm speak won't work on me, Dear. My brother's wife was Helen of Troy, one the greatest Charm Speakers of all time, and not even she could make me submit."

"Whatever," Piper said as she charged forward with Katropis.

Hector dropped his shield and sword, and caught Piper by the throat. He began to choke the life out of her. Piper swung with her knife but Hector released his grip on her neck and caught her knife arm instead. He twisted her wrist and a disgusting snap was heard. Piper screamed in agony as she sunk to her knees with the knife falling out of her grip. Piper screamed in agony. He then threw out his leg and landed a heavy kick into her chest. She flew several feet backwards and crashed into a group of monsters who pounced on her.

"PIPER!" Jason screamed from a distance and he flew to her aid.

Hector laughed and picked the eighteen inch long, Katropis, off the ground. He studied the blade admiringly. He diverted his attention back to Achilles. "This may only be a ceremonial knife but it will serve it's purpose in killing you. It's almost poetic isn't it, the greatest Greek Hero being killed by two sons and brothers of Troy." Hector smiled. "Prepare to die, again."

Achilles closed his eyes and anticipated the knife coming down on him. He waited for his death and then waited some more, but it never came. Instead he heard the sickening crunching noise and then a loud thump. Achilles opened his eyes to find a headless Hector kneeling in front of him with his head rolling on the ground. Standing behind him was Tyler Horace wielding a blood drenched WWII trench knife and Katropis in the other hand. He had used both knives to decapitate Hector.

_The Child of Strife armed with a knife,_

_Will help save a life._

The expression on Hector's dismembered face was one with a shocked expression, the mouth forming a perfect, 'O.' The body slumped forward and fell next to the head.

Achilles looked stunned at the body, back to the head, and then up to his savior.

"Can you fight?" Tyler grunted.

"I'm afraid not," Achilles winced trying to stand. "Isn't it ironic?" he added.

"What is?"

"The son of the goddess who has caused me the most pain coming to my aid?" He snorted. "Prophecies, I hate them."

Then from out of nowhere came, "NO!"from a horrified Paris.

Paris fired several arrows at Tyler who deflected them with his two knives. Paris charged but Tyler dodged out of the way and stabbed with both knives. Paris screamed in pain and fell to the ground. Before Tyler could deliver the killing blow Paris crawled to safety behind enemy lines.

"Coward!" Tyler called after him.

"Impressive," Achilles complimented.

Tyler shrugged. "We're not out the woods yet," he said analyzing the thousands of monsters and evil men that approached them. In the distance was Hercules and Leo struggling to fight off Pallas and Leon. "I wish you could be on your feet about now. I could really use a fully functional Greek Hero at the moment."

"How about a couple hundred?" Percy Jackson said coming to his side and patting him on the shoulder.

"Maybe a few Romans as well?" Jason Grace suggested while flipping his sword into a javelin.

"How about all of the Argonauts?" Achilles added struggling to his feet, using his sword as a cane.

Tyler analyzed the people around him that came to his side; Percy Jackson, Jason Grace, Annabeth Chase, Frank Zhang, Hazel Levesque, Piper McLean, Thalia Grace, Reyna, Clarisse, Grover, Theseus, Perseus, Odysseus, and many more familiar faces and many others missing. Tyler wished Julia was there with him.

Tyler nodded to Piper and tossed her, her knife.

The Argonauts had suffered many casualties and yet the battle still waged on. Pallas swatted Leo with her hand, Leo streaked the sky, and crash-landed next to his friends.

He stood to his feet slowly. "Ow!" he groaned.

Hercules rolled next to him after being punted by Leon. He stood to his feet and Achilles patted him on the back.

The monsters, Persians, Carthaginians, monsters, and the evil Spartans retreated, regrouped, and formed another ring around the Argonauts. They were surprised and annoyed that the Argonauts were still alive, but that would all change soon.

"YOU MAY HAVE SURVIVED THIS LONG ARGONAUTS, BUT NOW YOU WILL SURELY DIE!" Pallas roared.

"Is that a fact?" Percy asked.

The Argonauts should've been dead when they first arrived at the Atlas Mountains but still they had survived. They should have been dead in the ravine, they should have been dead on the plane, and they should have been dead then. The tone in Pallas's voice was sinister. The Argonauts were at the end of their rope. Only four-hundred or so remained and they were exhausted from fighting. Many of them couldn't even lift their weapons any had only taken out a couple thousand of their enemy and there was still at least another eight-thousand left. Many were broken, beaten, scarred, cut in multiple areas, and had broken bones. This was the end, the real end, the final end.

Pallas realized this and sneered in delight. "Pray to any god you wish, Argonauts, for they surely won't save you now!"

She raised her arm to signal her troops to charge again but from within the mountains came long, blasting, echoing moan, the sound of a horn; a conch shell to be exact. All fighting stopped immediately and eyes shot to the source of the conch shell. It came from the top of one of the hills that surrounded the valley. The blower of the horn was a man on a horse and a bow slung on his back. Neigh, for it was not a man, in actuality it was a centaur. Recognition struck the Argonauts faces.

"CHIRON!" Annabeth declaimed.

Pallas laughed. "This is what the gods send to aid their greatest heroes, a puny centaur." Leon joined her in her laughter.

Next to Chiron materialized a pale skinned and dark haired boy. He wore a black t-shirt with a skull imprint on it, and he wielded a dark-as-night stygian iron sword.

"NICO!" Hazel and Percy cried delighted.

Nico remained unmoving, a dark expression on his face, and he kept his eyes dead set on Pallas.

"Can he hear us?" Hazel asked confused by Nico's indifference to her.

"Sh," Annabeth told her. "Something's happening?" noticing all fighting in the valley had ceased to look up toward the loan Centaur and Son of Hades.

From next to Nico more figures joined him at his side. It didn't take a genius to recognize who they were. They were heroes from the old stories. There was Orion the Hunter, Aeneas, Atalanta the Swift, Romulus, and Remus. They were impressive in stature, yes, but they weren't the center of attention. The real eye catcher was a women who was beside them. She rode in a chariot pulled by two white mares. She was dressed in full gold and bronze armor, her blonde hair flowing within her helmet, she wielded a makhaira, and even from the distance she stood away from them, they could make out her intense grey eyes.

"Is that Athena?" one of the Argonauts asked.

"No..." breathed Tyler. He recognized that women. She wasn't even a women at all, but in fact she was a teenage girl. He had known her for many years. She looked different now, more mature, and older, but it was still the same person nonetheless.

"JULIA!" Tyler screamed, "JULIA!" He was waving his arms in the air caring not that he mostly likely looked ridiculous.

Even from the distance away she was Tyler could make out the warning glare she shot him. Tyler pressed his lips together obediently. Julia diverted her attention to Pallas.

"Pallas!" she called authoritatively.

"What is it demigod?" Pallas asked. "I'm in the middle of killing Argonauts here! Speak quickly."

"In the name of the Zeus, the King of the Gods, and the rest of High Council of the Olympians, you are here by ordered to surrender. If you don not comply you and your army will be destroyed!" Julia said demandingly. "This is your one warning!"

Pallas began to bellow in fits of laughter causing the Earth to shake. Her cronies joined in and the Atlas Mountains echoed with shrieks of guffawing. Only the Argonauts, the Heroes of Old, Nico, Chiron, and Julia, especially not Julia, were not amused.

"Don't say you weren't warned!" Julia shouted threateningly. "Prepared to be destroyed!"

"Oh really," Pallas said through pants, catching her breathe from laughing. "You and what army?"

Julia grinned. "How about this one...bitch!"

From next to Chiron Lupa appeared with her pack of wolves. They looked to the heavens and they let out long wolf howls while Chiron blasted on his conch shell. All along the perimeter of the valley materialized thousands and thousands of warriors. There was Spartans, Legionnaires, Medieval Knights, Viking Warriors, Samurais, Ninjas, Scottish Highlanders, Gladiators, Zulu warriors, Aztec Jaguars, Celtic Warriors, Ancient Chinese Warriors, Musketeers, and many other fighting forces from all over the world. It was an international army of ancient soldiers. Nico summoned undead soldiers from the Underworld and even the rest of the campers from Camp Half-Blood and Jupiter, who didn't become Argonauts, made an appearance. There were a few nymphs out there along with even more satyr/faun. There were hundreds of centaurs dressed in tie-dye shirts with joke weapons, Chiron's cousins most likely. Lupa was joined by dozens of animals from the animal kingdom like jaguars, tigers, lions, rhinos, elephants, cheetahs, and more. The most surprising appearance of all were the Hunters of Artemis lead by Phoebe. They decided to pull through in the end. Thalia smiled at this. Altogether, there was a force large enough to more than destroy Pallas' army. There was enough to obliterate them!

A smile cracked on Percy's face as he recognized a certain cyclops wielding a giant wooden club and a peanut butter covered out.

"TYSON!" Percy yelled out.

There he was, the great General of Poseidon's Cyclops Army, Tyson. He was accompanied by thousands of his Cyclops brethren each wearing golden armor, armed to the teeth with great swords, spears, and axes. They had come from the depths of the ocean to rescue the Argonauts.

"BROTHER!" Tyson echoed back. He almost charged but his brothers held him back.

The world rang as the animals roared and howled and the warrior pounded on their shields and chanted:

"ARGONAUTS! ARGONAUTS!"

"I-i-im-impossible!" Pallas stammered. She began to spin as she looked at the warriors that surrounded her.

"Who do we engage, My Lady," Leon asked panicked. "The Argonauts or this new threat?"

She gave no answer and merely stammered in awe.

"My Lady?"

Pallas took in a deep breathe and regained her composure. She was the bane of Athena after all. "Take them on!" she urged her troops.

"What about the Argonauts?" Leon asked.

"IT DOESN'T MATTER, FACE THEM, FACE EVERYONE, KILL THEM ALL! I DON'T CARE! JUST GET IT DONE!"

The monsters, Persians, Carthaginians, and the corrupt Spartans prepared for battle on all fronts. Panic was stricken on all their faces.

Julia raised her sword into the air and shouted, "TO THE ARGONAUTS AND DEATH'S DOORS!"

Her massive army replied with their own, "TO THE ARGONAUTS AND DEATH'S DOORS!"

They lurched froward and descended into the valley in an epic charge. The Argonauts could only stare dumbly at the turn of events.

"Chiron and Lupa pulled through," Annabeth breathed in wonderment.

"The others though," came Reyna, "the knights and the vikings and the samurai? Who are they?" she stuttered.

"It's the League!" Tyler answered almost excited.

"Who?" Achilles asked.

"You mean the people my dad was telling me about?" Leo tried.

"Yeah, I'll explain later," Tyler said quickly, "but right now we have a battle to win!"

Tyler raised his knife and screamed, "JULIA!"

Again it was Tyler who lead the charge into battle and the rest of the Argonauts following him.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	24. Rise of a Hero

The ILH encompassed Pallas and her forces in a gigantic tidal wave of death. The two forces collided in a thunderous clash of banging metals. Viking battle axes splintered shields, samurai katanas sliced through armor like butter, undead soldiers hacked through flesh, legionnaires pushed through shield walls, the Highlanders let out wild howls, the knights speared with lances, the ninjas vanished in clouds of black smoke as they dealt death, the Celtics howled with laughters as they fought, the musketeers marched, and everyone fought like Hell. There were various warriors from various nations. The Immortals, evil Spartans, and Carthaginians were overwhelmed by the idea of combating so many different forms of fighting styles that all they could was try to stay alive.

The Argonauts rushed up behind Pallas's army and did their part in helping the ILH immensely. Carthaginians, corrupt Spartans, Immortals, and monsters fell by the dozens. The tides of the battle were now reversed. Instead of the Argonauts fighting for their lives it was now Pallas and her evil horde. The Valley of Death's Doors had turned into a killing field.

The Argonauts fought chaotically as the death's of their friends, brothers, and sisters were still fresh in their minds. They fought for those they lost and those they loved. They fought for the future and their own self worth. They fought out of vengeance. They were ruthless and merciless.

The ILH fought in the name of their duty to serve the Gods and the defense of the world they lived in. Chiron's centaur relatives fought for the party and good times. Campers of Half-Blood and Jupiter fought to save their friends known as the Argonauts and to prove they were just as good as them. Lupa's wolves and their wild allies roared as they fought to protect the wild from Gaea's tyranny. Chiron and Lupa, the two mentors of the heresies, fought side by side. Lupa bounded from opponent to opponent, breaking necks with her powerful jaws, while Chiron covered her with expertly aimed shots with his bow.

Nico fought side by side with Hazel. The two children of the Underworld as shadows as they seemed to melt with the darkness. Hazel was riding circles around her brother on top of Arion, becoming a blur, and Nico summoned undead warriors from the ground. Hazel used her control over metals to crush upon the armor that encapsulated their opponents and she would levitate weapons and fling them into nearby enemies. Nico used shadow travel to pounce from target to target as he stabbed with his stygian sword and summoned more and more undead warriors to aid them.

"Nice of you to join the party!" Thalia said to Phoebe and the rest of the Hunters.

"We came to our senses," said Phoebe. "We realized we were being stupid."

"No kidding," said Thalia after taking down an Earthborn, "but you're here now and I guess that counts."

The Hunters of Artemis formed a circle as they shot their bows in rapid fire. Their formation created a fountain of death that discharged arrows.

As Theseus, Hercules, Perseus, Odysseus, and Achilles fought; they felt something different within them and they realized what it was. In the past they had always fought individually, by themselves, and for themselves. They fought for their glory, their pride, and their honor; but they had realized they were fighting for a greater cause. They were fighting for their brothers and sisters who they would they would gladly die for. The majority of the Heroes of Old had already done that. The remainder of them decided that they were not the most beings who resided Universe. The Atlas Mountains is where they would end their past lives, put down their egos, and start new legends. Theseus and Perseus were wicked with their swords, Odysseus was a shimmer of light as hi fired arrow after arrow, Hercules was an absolute beast, and Achilles hobbled on his injured heel as he dual-wielded a gladius and xiphos; they were pure awesomeness. They fought for the ones they harmed and they hoped the lost ones were watching from the Underworld. They fought to make things right, to absolve for their sins, and to bring balance to their lives and to others.

_Repent for their sins,_

_In order to save their kin._

_Absolve for their crimes,_

_To live in bliss for all time._

Some of the Argonauts and the ILH warriors stopped what they were doing just watch the ancient heroes fight. They nodded their heads in admiration and soon went back to fighting inspired by the original monster killers.

Theseus was on his own while he fought off dozens of monsters and Carthaginians. He fought like a savage as he jumped back and forth between enemies, stabbing with his sword, and bashing with his cudgel. A Earthborn snuck up behind him and prepared to drop a boulder on his skull. Theseus noticed but was to late. Suddenly, a green sword burst out of the Earthborn's chest. The earthly monster dissolved into a pile of mud and behind it stood Perseus who was wielding his sword and shield.

"Thanks," said Theseus.

"DOWN" Perseus said quickly.

Theseus ducked as Perseus swung over his head with his sword. There was a sickening crunch. Theseus stood back to his feet and looked to the ground to find a dead Immortal.

"That's twice you owe me," said Perseus.

Before Theseus could retort a charging elephant barreled into Perseus. Perseus was knocked off his feet and he hit the ground rolling. He was painfully tossed head over heels for several yards. The elephant continued to trample him as it's driver was going mad with laughter. Theseus came to the rescue and slashed at the elephant's massive legs. It yelped and hunched to the ground in pain. This allowed Theseus to run up it's trunk and to jump on to it's back. From atop the elephant Theseus killed the driver and all the passengers aboard it. He then stabbed his sword hilt deep into the back of the elephant's head killing it. Theseus jumped down from the war elephant and landed next to the groaning Perseus.

Theseus extended a hand out to him and helped him to his feet. "I think we're even now."

Perseus cracked his neck and stretched. He let out a sigh of relief as he loosened his cramped muscles. "Fair enough," was his reply.

"Hey," called Percy. "What are you two doing standing around? We've got a battle to win, remember?"

Percy Jackson joined them with Annabeth at his side.

Theseus was about to make a witty reply but was cut off by a thundering , "PERSEUS!" It was shrieked by a man with a heavy french accent.

The speaker wasn't a man at all but a giant lion with a peculiar scorpion like tail. Were there should have been a feline face there was a human's instead. The creature had one blue eye and one brown eye; it always wore a sneering expression. It was no one other than Dr. Thorn the Manticore.

"Does he mean me or you?" Perseus asked.

"JACKSON!" Dr. Thorn pronounced it, 'yak-son.'

Percy sighed, "This guy again?"

"I seek my revenge," snarled Thorn.

"Yeah, you and the rest of the monsters in the world, get in line pal!" Percy replied.

Percy, Annabeth, Perseus, and Theseus charged forward. Dr. Thorn launched spikes from his tail. Theseus and Annabeth rolled out of the way while Percy and Perseus blocked the missiles with their shields. Theseus and Annabeth went in to strike but Thorn swatted them away. Percy and Perseus studied each other's shields and made eye contact.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Percy asked mischievously.

Perseus nodded his head. At the same time they hurled their shields with all their might. Percy's wrist-watch shield and Perseus's silver one soared through the air like flying saucers. They struck Thorn in the face with a loud thud and the disks ricochetted off it. Perseus's magically returned to his hand. Percy's was lost in the battle and probably gone forever.

"Why do I always lose my shield?" Percy asked forlornly. "Tyson is going to kill me."

Thorn yelped in pain and crumpled to the ground. He laid on his back as he gingerly pawed at his face, moaning and groaning.

Annabeth took her chance and climbed on top of the monster's chest. "Remember how you kidnapped me three years ago?"

"Not exactly?" was all Thorn could manage before Annabeth plunged her knife into his chest.

Thorn exploded into monster dust. Annabeth rejoined her boyfriend, Theseus, and Perseus and the four of them rushed off in separate directions, leapt into the massive battle, and faced their next opponents

Tyson and his cyclops brothers pounded away with their great weapons and fought in the name of peanut butter and all good relatives of Poseidon. Tyson could be heard bellowing things like, "bad cyclops," or, "bad monster," or, "bad man," as he pounded with his club. Tyson was joined by Ms. O'Leary and Percy.

"BROTHER, DOGGY!" Tyson shouted in glee.

"BROTHER!" Percy responded.

Ms. O'Leary barked.

Tyson quickly wrapped Percy in a bear hug while Ms. O'Leary licked them both. Immediately after the sappy moment they diverted their attention back to the battle. Tyson grabbed a hold of Percy's arm and flung him into a squad of dracaena. Percy whirled Riptide and cut them to shreds. Ms. O'Leary brought down a war elephant with a few snaps from her razor fangs. Tyson sent a couple Earthborn in to orbit with a swing of his club.

Tyson and Percy fought back to back.

"Hey bro," Percy said to him guiltily. "I kind of lost my shield again," after he stabbed an Immortal.

"Again, brother?" Tyson asked. "After we punish bad cyclops brothers I will make you a new one," Tyson said, stomping on a Hellhound's snout.

"You're the best brother ever Tyson."

"I thought I was the best brother?" Theseus asked in mock offense while walking up to them, twirling his sword and cudgel through enemies.

"What about me?" Frank asked also accompanying them, shooting golden sun arrows from Oriens.

"You're more of a really close cousin," Percy told him.

"Everyone knows I'm Percy's favorite out of all his brothers," said Grover after using his reed pipes to entangle a war elephant in vines.

"And I'm his mean older sister," said Thalia coming in with the Hunters of Artemis.

"Don't forget the faithful girlfriend," Annabeth added while jumping into the fray with her friends.

One by one, the group became larger and larger as more people joined them; Jason, Piper, Hazel, Nico, Reyna, Octavian, Clarisse, Will Solace, Chris Lopez, Butch, the Stoll brothers, Katie Gardener, and many more of their confreres. Percy was glad that they were all there and they all alive and healthy; besides the cuts, bruises, and fractured bones.

Leo, who was completely engulfed in flames when he landed besides them. He extinguished his fire and summoned a hammer from his tool belt and began smashing away at the groin region of unfortunate Earthborn.

"What do we have here?" he mulled gleefully. "I didn't know Comic Con was in town?"

He looked to Percy who had summoned a tidal wave to smashed a group of Telekhine, "Aquaman!"

Then to Frank who turned into a gorilla, "Beast Boy!"

Then to Jason who called down a lightning strike on a war elephant, "Thor!"

"Magneto," to Hazel who used her power over metal lift a few swords into the air and then launching them into evil spartans.

"Excuse me," said Hazel offended. "Isn't Magneto a male character!" However, Leo ignored her.

In the corner of his eye he saw Perseus throw his shield like a frisbee, "Captain America!"

To Will Solace, "Green Arrow!"

Leo noticed the skull ring Nico wore on his finger, "Green lantern!"

"Poison Ivy," to Katie Gardner.

"We're just missing Tyler," said Leo, grinning. "He makes a perfect Batman. Where is he, whatever, he's probably fine, right?"

"Then there's me," Leo said pointing to himself. "The Human Torch, flame on!" He covered himself in flames once more and torched a some Earthborn with fireballs thrown from his hands.

"What does that make us then, the Justice League?" and amused Jason asked.

"Nah," answered Leo. "More like, the Heroes of Olympus, yeah, that sounds so awesome!"

"I dub thee, the Heroes of Olympus!"

Leo broke into a fit of giggle and continued to use his hands like flame throwers while humming, 'Heroes of Olympus,' over and over again to himself.

Hercules cut in on the conversation. "Ready to take on those giants again?" he asked Leo.

"Do we have too?" Leo whined. Hercules gave him a stern look. "All right fine! Lead the way Beast!"

Hercules nodded and bounded through the enemy army in the direction of Death's Doors which Leon and Pallas were protecting. The two Gaea spawn were busy fighting off a large group of ILH warriors trying to close the doors but weren't having any luck.

Before Leo followed Hercules, he looked to Hylla and Reyna, and winked. "Wonder Women and the Amazons!"

Before they could respond, Leo took off into the clouds, and flew in the direction of the giants, to once again do battle with them.

"Why is he so annoying?" Reyna said looking up to Leo and watching him fly into the distance. She couldn't help herself from smiling though. He was a super hero or better.

"Wait, why aren't we helping them?" Percy asked mystified as he looked after Leo and Hercules.

Jason shrugged. "Let's go then!"

The Heroes of Olympus abandoned their current fight and followed Leo and Hercules into battle.

* * *

><p>The combined forces of the Argonauts, the ILH, Lupa, the Centaur, Poseidon's Cyclops, and the Hunters of Artemis had Pallas and her forces skirting away and cowering in fear.<p>

Atalanta and Orion stood back to back. Orion swung his club in great strokes as Atalanta fired arrows from her bow rapidly.

Orion looked over his shoulder and said, "Sixty-six," after sending a telekhine sky high.

Atalanta responded with, "Not bad, but I'm already at eighty."

"You are such a liar and a cheat," Orion claimed. He then let out a mighty roar and charged forward.

"Can't hear you," Atalanta said. "I'm too busy killing and getting a better score than you."

Orion responded by letting out an annoyed grunt as he leapt into a group of monsters.

Romulus and Remus giggled with glee as they hacked through Carthaginians. The two brothers exercise had mirrored attacks and defenses. Their enemies had no idea how to deal with a wild force such as them.

"Oh, how I've missed this greatly brother," Romulus chuckled while stabbing a Carthaginian with his gladius.

"Why did we stop doing this again?" Remus wondered.

"I think it's because we died."

"Oh, right!" Remus remembered while ducking under a spear.

Romulus paused in his fighting as he spotted someone in the corner out of his eye. "Is that who I think it is?" he considers, recognizing a familiar face.

Remus noticed what his brother was looking at. "The man who destroyed our empire and our legacy?"

"What was his name?"

"Hannibal."

"Right."

In unison, the twins said, "Let us kill him."

The two charged through the Carthaginians' lines until the twins reached Hannibal. They found him holding off a few ILH members by the carcass of a downed war elephant. The brothers attacked at the same time using the same exact patterns. Hannibal frantically stepped in reverse as he tried blocking their quick strikes. He ushered his men forward but they were quickly dispatched by Romulus and Remus's identical gladiuses. Hannibal stepped back into the corpse of a dead elephant preventing him from further retreat.

The two twin brothers grinned menacingly at the Carthaginian general.

"Greetings," said Remus.

Romulus: "You don't know us-"

Remus: "-because we're a couple hundreds years before your time-"

Romulus: "-but we started the greatest Empire known to man-"

Remus: "-and you destroyed it-"

Romulus: "Are we happy about that brother?"

Remus:"No we are not. So now-

Romulus: "-it is time-"

Remus: "-for you-

Romulus: "-to pay-"

Remus: "-your dues."

Romulus: "Like us Romans say..."

In unison: "...Tempus moriendi."

The two twin brothers of Rome stabbed forward with their gladiuses and impaled Hannibal in the chest. They watched in delight as they saw him squirm in agony and wither to nothingness.

The two twin brothers looked at each other while removing their swords from Hannibal's corpse and shook hands.

"Good work brother," congratulated Remus.

"Same to you brother," Romulus replied. "Now on to the next one!"

The two twin brothers of Rome nodded and were joined by the McDonald brothers. The two pairs of brothers stepped into battle with many chuckles to be had.

* * *

><p>Aeneas was alone as he took on the Trojan Warriors. Second to Hector, Aeneas was the greatest spearmen in the whole Trojan army, and this is were he proved it to be true. He twirled his spear in massive arcs, swept legs out from under Trojans, slammed his shield into skulls, and thrusted through the breastplates of armor. Before he realized it Aeneas had crushed his way through the majority of the Trojans. He smashed his way through one final line of them and found Paris in the fetal position nursing a bleeding gut. Aeneas pressed the tip of his spear to the coward's throat.<p>

Paris looked up to him, coughed, and snarled, "Traitor."

"Me, the traitor?" Aeneas asked dumbfounded. "It was not I who joined the ranks of monsters and now serves the dark mother."

"For being a son of Aphrodite you fight well," Paris said changing the subject. He eyed the spear point and then spat, "Finish it."

Aeneas shook his head. "I will let the Fates decide your, well, your fate."

With that Aeneas jaunted off to take on his next opponent.

"Coward!" Paris called off after him. Paris coughed a few more times and slowly awaited his death. A sharp pain erupted through his body. The Fates weren't going to make his passing an easy one.

* * *

><p>Tyler and Julia fought like a bats out of hell. Tyler had one thing on his mind and that was Julia. Julia had only a single thought and it was of Tyler. They both rushed from opposite sides of the valley, fighting through enemies, screaming each others names, hoping to meet each other half-way. Julia rode her chariot and Tyler was on his feet. They closed the distance between each other with great haste.<p>

"JULIA!" Tyler screamed as he pounced on to an Earthborn's chest, stabbed it, pounced on to a couple dracaena, and then leapt into a dozen evil mortals.

Nothing stood in his way.

"JULIA!"

Nothing could stop him.

"TYLER!" Julia yelled as she swung her makhaira through a pack of Hellhounds, her horses trample through some Carthaginians, and her chariot ran over a couple Spartans.

"TYLER!"

They were only a couple hundred feet away from each other when a boulder thrown by a Laistroygian hit Julia's chariot. Julia's vehicle lurched, flipped over, and she was flung from it. She got to her feet quickly and continued on by sprinting towards Tyler. However, Hippias and a squad of his Spartans headed her off before they could reach each other.

"JULIA!" Tyler yelped.

Before he could run to her aid, Tyler was cut off by a pack of mangy, black coated, red-eyed wolves. These weren't Lupa's wolves. These were the same ones that had pursued him for five months all over Europe. These weren't just any ordinary wolves, they were Lycanthrope, Werewolves. There was two dozen in all and they formed a square around Tyler. They bared their fangs and growled at him. Tyler gritted his teeth and growled back. He looked to the wolves and then to Julia who wad dueling Hippias. He stepped toward her but the wolves move to intercept him. He tried taking a different path but they moved to meet him. They were like flies to a carcass. Tyler grunted in frustration. They were forcing him into fight. Julia would have to fend for herself for the time being but from where Tyler was standing he could see she was handling her self nicely.

Tyler brought his attention back to the werewolves and postured up for combat. The Lycanthrope parted their ring to allow their leader to step forward. It was a man with greasy and ragged hair, the color of charcoal, and he wore a crown of made of finger bones. His clothing was of tattered fur robes made of wolf, rabbit, raccoon, deer, and other pelts. The pale skin on his face was pulled tight over his skull. His teeth were sharpened like fangs. Like his wolves, his eyes glowed demon red and they fixed upon Tyler hungrily.

"Why isn't it the maniac son of Eris, or is it Discordia?" the wolf man growled. "One can never tell with that psychopath of a mother of yours."

Images flashed in Tyler's head. "Lycaon," he remembered. "You and I have unfinished business," he snarled.

Lycaon walked circles around him. "Indeed we do. My pack has been craving for your flesh for quite some time now. You're a psychopath, just like your mother, but you want to know something about psychos? They taste the best."

Tyler ignored him and studied the wolves around him. His training kicked in as he analyzed the stances of his enemies, their size, their height, and their weight. He anticipated their first moves and which targets to eliminate first. Tyler flipped his knife in the air experimentally. The wolves eyed it cautiously.

Tyler noticed their reaction to the weapon. "That's right," Tyler recalled. "The only thing that can kill you is silver and if I remember correctly that is what my knife is made of."

Lycaon barked. "It matters not boy! We outnumber you. We will kill you, we will have our fill on your sweet flesh, and then we will move on to one of your fellow Argonauts for desert."

Tyler smirked. "Well, what are you waiting for then? The food is getting cold."

The wolves came at Tyler all at once. He ducked out of the way and jumped to and fro. He slashed and hacked, stabbed and impaled, thrusted and lunged. Tyler lost all control of his movements as his brain went into savage autopilot, the demigod ADHD took over, and he let himself go. He grabbed a wolf by it's throat and slammed it into another two. He kicked, bit, and clawed. He cut with the blade of his trench knife. He punched with the brass knuckles. He pounded with the skull crusher. His knife was the ultimate combination of death. The wolves would try to take him down systematically but he was entropy. They would try to kill him with order but he was havoc. They tried to kill him, period, but Chaos is something that cannot simply be killed.

"IMPOSSIBLE!" Lycaon snarled bringing Tyler out of his trance.

Tyler's eyes snapped open and he found himself surrounded by piles of dead werewolves. Tyler hand no time to take pride in his work for a wolf pounced on his back. Before it could sink it's jaws around his neck, Tyler reach over his head, grabbed it by the scruff, pulled it over his shoulder, and slammed it to the ground. He followed up with a quick finishing slash with his blade across the wolf's throat. Without even any time to recover, a solid mass slammed into him, and knocked him to the ground. He laid flat on his back as Lycaon pinned him.

"You will pay for killing my children!" Lycaon snarled as he proceeded to claw and bite Tyler.

Tyler flailed his arms wildly as he tried to defend himself. He felt his knife meet skin and then heard a howl of pain. He felt jaws wrap around his neck and the painful sensation of teeth puncturing the soft flesh of his throat. Tyler let out a howl of his own and began to stab his blade frantically, he punched with the brass knuckles, and smashed with the skull crusher. He stabbed and pounded on anything he could come in contact with. He slashed and felt blood splatter on his skin. If it were his or Lycaon's he had no idea. There was a sickening crunch and for a moment Tyler thought it was the sound of his neck snapping. However, the pressure around his neck ceased, and the teeth were withdrawn from his skin. Tyler withdrew the knife blade out of Lycaon's heart and pushed the dead body off of him. The first werewolf and the King of the Lycanthrope was dead.

Tyler pressed a hand to his bleeding neck and applied pressure to stop the bleeding but it was no use anyway. The damage had already been done. His carotid artery was cut, the blood continued to flow, and seep through his fingers with no sign of stopping. It was only a matter of time before he would bleed out. He laid on his back, gasping for air, thoughts of Julia on his mind, and memories flooding back to him.

His life flashed before his eyes. He saw the times when his dad beat him, when he first arrived on Olympus, meeting his mother, training, being sworn as an ILH Operative, fighting various monsters, going on covert missions, fighting with Julia. His memories of Julia before Hera abducted them was of the two of them always fighting. However there was always the two years after their abduction. The two years that they spent joking, exploring museums, admiring art, and enjoying good times. A smile cracked on Tyler's lips and he wondered if that was the first time he had smiled in years, or if he had ever smiled at all. Joy overwhelmed him as he relived the last two years of his life. Although a majority of it was spent running from police and werewolves, it was the best two years of his life, ever.

Guilt and sadness enveloped Tyler. Not because he knew he was going to die but because he wasn't going to see Julia before he did. He had come all that way to merely perish without seeing her. Tyler tried to get up but he couldn't even move a muscle. The loss of blood was making him go numb. There was a light in the back of his mind that hooked on to him and was reeling him in. Tyler tried to scream in rage but even that was to difficult. Tyler's hands became drenched as the blood continued to pour and the life continued to fade.

"Well, this sucks!" Tyler managed to grunt.

* * *

><p>"Don't worry," Julia huffed as she stabbed Hippias in the heart, "I'm coming Tyler!" She dislodged her sword from Hippias's chest, cut through a couple more corrupt Spartans, and broke into a sprint.<p>

Julia turned in the direction of where Tyler should have been but her line of sight was blocked by hundreds of fighting teenagers, satyrs, monsters, and men. Julia pushed past her allies and slew her enemies.

"Tyler, Tyler!" she shouted over the sounds of battle.

She made her way through the battle zone searching frantically for him. Then she saw him. A cold icy hand gripped her heart and she almost fell to her knees in shock.

"Oh my gods, TYLER!" she screamed.

She rushed towards his limp body. She killed two Persian Immortals who stood in her way, threw her shield like a frisbee into a cyclops, ripped off her helmet and used it to beat in the skull of a Carthaginian, and finally she reached Tyler.

She dropped all her weapons and crouched down to examine his body. She was totally leaving her self open for attack but she didn't care. She was confident in the fact that her troops would watch her back. He was alive but barley. Tyler had an ugly gash in his neck, his carotid artery was severed, and he was losing blood too quickly. If he didn't get medical attention soon, he would die. Julia reached to pick him up but Tyler shook his head weakly.

"Julia," he whispered up to her. He was squinting as if he was struggling to keep his eyes open.

"Yes," Julia gulped, choking back the tears. "I'm here," she said stroking his face. "We have to get you to a medic."

Tyler ignored her last comment and smiled, it was becoming a new habit of his. He studied how she looked in her armor, her grey eyes glistening with tears, and her blonder hair loose and flowing. "You look so beautiful."

"You're complimenting me. That's not a good sign. That's means you've lost a lot of blood," Julia said seriously. "Now, let's go, doctor time!"

"Sh," he hushed her. "You're spoiling the moment," Tyler giggled dreamily. She was losing him. "I got a haircut, did you see, it was for you."

Julia forced a smile. "I saw and I love it but we really have to go!" She was desperate.

"Why?" Tyler asked innocently.

"Because you'll die!"

Tyler shook his head. "I remember."

"What?" Julia said hurriedly.

"Everything. The ILH. Mom. Dad. Me. You. Everything. We always-"

"-hated each other," Julia finished for him. "I know."

"But were friends now. We love each other. Hera's a genius, although still a bitch." Tyler coughed violently and Julia's heart sunk even further. "She knew we hated each other and she needed us close. Do you know why?"

"You can tell me when a medic is treating you."

"Julia, just listen we don't have a lot of time."

"I know, that's why we need to hurry!"

"Listen!" Tyler snapped. "You and I both know I'm not going to make it so stop being so gods damn Athena-like and listen!" His voice was raspy and he struggled over every word.

Julia pursed her lips and felt tears streak down her face.

"Hera needed us to form this strong bond so that we would protect each other and care for each other. Our bond has become so strong that if one of use loses each other we become like my mother. That was her plan all along."

"You're scaring me Tyler," Julia said with the tears coming down like a waterfall.

"If one of us dies, the other would become so enveloped in rage they we would become irrational, crazy, which would make us invincible, god-like even. I know it's hard to understand but," Tyler reached a hand up to Julia's cheek and stroked it. His fingers were cold to the touch. She closed her eyes upon the physical connection and kissed his fingers gently. She tasted the salt of his blood. "You're the daughter of Athena, I know you know what I'm talking about."

Julia shook her head refusing to accept the truth. "No," she choked.

"Before I go," Tyler gulped for air. "Two things: One, I'm not the seventh. They thought I was the one in the prophecy but I'm not the guy. I hate prophecies...I guess all we heroes do, if you can call me one," Tyler laughed, " my mom told me a lot of things. She said the life I would save someone. It would be someone I did not expect. She was right. She told me I would forever be changed. Did she know I was going to freaking die?" Tyler laughed again which lead to coughing.

Julia continued to shake her head and wiped the tears from her eyes as she pet Tyler's hair.

"Two, take this." Tyler patted the ground aimlessly till his fingers wrapped around his seven and half inch WWII trench knife. He placed it into Julia's hand.

Julia shook her had furiously now. "NO! I'm not taking that, that's yours; besides, you're going to need it later!"

Tyler took his turn to shake his head. "You'll need it more than me," Tyler coughed, "and remember this; I will always be your shield Julia, I swear it you. I will always watch over you." Tyler inhaled deeply and then exhaled, the air slowly escaping his mouth.

_An oath to keep with a final breath._

"NO!" Julia wailed. "NO!"

She pounded on Tyler chest. "Wake up!" She grabbed him by his limp shoulders and shook him violently. "PLEASE DON'T! Please, no, no!" Julia looked up to the clouds.

"WHY!" Julia screamed to no god in particular.

Julia rested her head on his chest. She didn't care there was a battle going on around her and she didn't care that she was crying openly. Her tears washed the dirt and blood from her cheeks. She had worked so hard to find him and when she finally did, he ha to die, he just had to.

_The seventh is revealed,_

_Who was hidden behind a shield._

"Why?" she muttered one more time.

_Because. The fates work in mysterious ways._

It was Hera speaking in her head, or was it someone else?

"Shut up," Julia replied.

There was no answer. Julia's sadness was replaced with anger. She looked back to Tyler's face. She had always remembered him to be brooding and scowling all the time, but there he looked almost peaceful. She looked deeply into his black eyes. At first glance they only held darkness and the cold, but if one looked deeper, they could find warmth. Julia placed her finger gently on his eyelids and prepared to shut them one last time. As soon as her finger tips made contact with his skin, a shock traveled down her arm, and up her spine that jolted her. Tyler's eyes turned bright red and red smoke emerged from his mouth and nose. The smoke curled upwards and entered through Julia's own nostrils and mouth. She felt her brain fill with the red mist and her thoughts became hazy.

A voice entered her head:

_They will pay for that they have done to my son! Daughter of Athena, we have work to do. Gather your weapons, fight!_

_Rise!_

"What about his body?" Julia asked, looking at Tyler's corpse. She didn't want to leave it for the vultures.

_He will need it._

"Huh?"

_Rise!_

Julia lost control of her body. She gripped her makhaira and with her other hand she feed her fingers through the grips of Tyler's knife. She stood to her feet and examined the battle around her. She looked to Death's Doors to see the Heroes of Old, the Prophecy of Seven members, and other warriors doing battle with Pallas and Leon. They weren't making any progress.

Julia narrowed her eyes and walked off into that direction. As she walked a red foggy aura emitted from her skin. The red smoke steamed from her nostrils, eyes, and mouth. Several Immortals came to intercept her. They swung their weapons but Julia didn't even bother to block. Their swords made contact with her skin but they merely bounced off her harmlessly. Julia fired back with a swing or her sword and slash with Tyler's knife. The Immortals dropped like rocks. She made her way to Pallas and Leon while she threw enemies aside easily. Most of them cowered in fear by just looking into her eyes. They were forced to make a choice; die or run in fear. Most chose the latter. Julia fought threw the horde of enemies till she reached Death's Doors and the two giants. Her allies were fighting them the best they could but it was to no avail. They needed a god to kill a giant.

"ENOUGH!" Julia barked as she jumped into the battle. "THEY'RE MINE!" Her voice alone made her allies slowly back away. She spoke with the authority of a greek goddess. It was almost like one was speaking through her.

Slowly, they backed away and gave her space. They were either going to have to back off or fight her. It only took one look of her red eyes for them to make their decision. Her allies were blatantly against watching her fight on her own but they understood what was happening, and what they needed to do. They decided they would provide cover for Julia and protect her from any outside source while she did what she had to do.

"YOU WILL PAY FOR WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO HIM!" Julia screamed at the two Giants.

"What do you suppose you're going to do against two Giants, little girl?" Pallas brayed through her goat like laugh.

"Kill you for starters!" Julia told them matter-of-factly.

"Oh ho!" Leon roared in laughter. "Did you hear that, 'kills us,' she says!"

"I heard her brother! If she wants to die, then let her come!"

Pallas raised her hand and made a, 'bring it,' gesture. "Your move, Daughter of Athena!"

Julia grinned a Tyler grin. She twirled her makhaira and her trench knife experimentally, just how Tyler would have don it, just the way Eris would have done it. Slowly, Julia walked forward with no allies behind her or beside her. It was just her against the world.

_Wisdom's daughter walks alone._

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	25. The Mark of Athena

As Julia approached her two gigantic opponents she could feel the hot blood of rage coursing through her veins. Revenge was the only thought on her mind. It was as if here thirst for justice was doubled due to the fact that it felt as if another entity was residing in her. This spirit heightened her senses and strengthened her will. It was almost like another person was controlling her. At first she thought this new found sensation was her own hunger for vengeance but the feeling she felt, the presence, she was sure there was someone else in her, watching over her, commanding. It was as if something was living through her, as if her own consciences, and another's both craved the blood of their enemies and sought to punish those that wronged them.

As Julia walked toward the two children of Gaea a battle broke out around her. The Argonauts and the ILH resumed fighting with the monsters, Carthaginians, corrupt Spartans, and Immortals. That was of no concern to her. She didn't stop when enemies came to intercept her and she didn't stop when friends died in front of her. The world seemed to fade around her and there was only her Pallas, Leon, and the second consciences within her. Her veins pumped acid, her lungs breathed hate, and her eyes burned flames. She was no longer Julia. The red mist escaped her nostrils and mouth as she breathed; the red aura pulsed from her with every step she took.

As Julia marched she thought back on the last two years of her life. It was the time when her memory was stolen by Hera and everything she knew about Olympus, gods, and monsters was nonexistent. She was only a shell of bitter nothingness. In order to cope with the lack of knowledge she turned to Catholicism to fill the vacuum. At that moment, even after her memory was reclaimed, she found herself returning to The Holy Bible, and murmuring a particular verse that she took kindly too in times of darkness:

"The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger upon those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you!"

**(Ezekiel 25:17)**

Her march broke into a brisk jog till she found her self full on sprinting towards the giants. When she achieved maximum speed she raised her weapons. Tyler's trench knife in one hand and her maikhra in the other. She let out a wild howl that was more Tyler than Julia. She was no longer the obedient servant of the gods. Leon and Pallas welcomed her with smiles. Julia returned the favor with a grin of her own.

Pallas let out a laugh before she swung her humungous sword. Julia rolled out of the way. Leon came bounding in with his club over head and then brought it down when he was in range. Julia jumped back just before the club could squash her. There was a deep crater left in the ground where the club struck. Julia lost control of her body as she went in for the attack. Her mind was on auto-pilot as her instincts took over and the commands of another being directed her movements. She dodge more swings from Pallas and stomps from Leon. Using her sword and Tyler's knife in unison she slashed out at the two giants' reptilian legs. The razor sharp blades opened gashes in their scaled skin causing the golden blood of immortals, Ichor, to flow freely. The two giants hopped about in pain.

"You're only prolonging the inevitable child!" bellowed Pallas as she swung her sword blindly.

Julia ignored her and continued to bounce between the two giants; dodging and hacking away. The Argonauts and the ILH had no time to watch the bizarre duel that was happening between the trio. They were too occupied with what was left of the Immortals, Carthaginians, evil Spartans, and monsters who were back on the attack. Not only that, there appeared to be more reinforcements emerging from Death's Doors. These evil reinforcements were made up of old Roman and Greek enemies. Although the ILH and Argonauts had greater numbers, they would have been overwhelmed if Death's Doors weren't closed soon. All they needed to do was give Julia enough time to take the two giants out of the equation.

Leon let out a bellow of rage as Julia lodged her sword hilt deep into his knee. In blind furry, Leon raised his club skyward and brought it down with all his might. Julia darted out of the way just in time. Leon struck the ground so hard that it caused his club to be lodged within the crust of the Earth. Julia took the opportunity to perform a maneuver that she once saw Tyler do when he was fighting a cyclops long ago. While Leon was trying to pull his weapon out of the ground, Julia dodged a couple more swings from Pallas, and then charged Leon. She ran up the length of his club and then up his arms. When it became too steep for her to climb she leapt upward and stabbed her sword and knife into Leon's skin. She used the two weapons similarly to grappling hooks as she climbed u the giant's arm length. Leon screamed in pain and tried swatting her away with his free hand. Just before she was squashed by the giant's jumbo palm she withdrew her blades from his flesh and leapt to the giant's shoulder. From there she took hold of his lion like mane and used the strands of his hair like rope to haul to the peak of his skull. When she reached the top of his head she stabbed down with her sword and knife. Leon threw his head back in pain. To prevent herself from falling she dashed from the top of his scalp to his forehead.

There the two locked eyes. Julia gave him the best kill-face she had ever given anyone. It was a look Tyler had taught her; one that would make any opponent cower in fear. Julia could have sworn that she saw a glimmer of fear in the giant's pupils. She gave him a wicked smile before planting her blades into the sockets of his eyes. Leon's shrieks of pain caused her ears to go deaf leaving a ringing noise reverberating through her skull. Julia withdrew her blades and jumped across Leon's gapping mouth and climbed down his chin. She stood in front of his unprotected neck. Leisurely, she slid the edges of her maikhra and trench knife across his throat creating a large laceration. Leon didn't scream this time. What came out instead was an unpleasant gurgling sound. Slowly, Leon feel backwards and Julia rode the dying giant the whole way down. Leon hit the dirt with a thud causing the ground to shake and dust to pick up. The body of Leon dissolved and what remained was the pelt of a lion and the victorious Julia Myers. If the pelt hadn't come from something so evil it might have been considered majestic.

Pallas spoke bringing Julia back to attention. "IMPOSSIBLE!" Pallas screamed. "How could a puny demigod destroy a brother of mine without the aid of a god...unless...no!" Pallas noticed the dark red aura pulsing in ripples from Julia's skin. The girl's eyes were dark red and red mist billowed from the orifices of her face. Pallas narrowed her eyes in fearful understanding.

"Eris..."

Julia felt a shift in her mood and she lost control of her lips. A voice that was not hears began to speak.

_Yes, Gaea Spawn, it is I, the Lady of Discord, the bringer of havoc, the Goddess of Chaos, ERIS!_

_YOU HAVE KILLED MY SON AND YOU SHALL PAY WITH YOUR LIFE! I WILL BE YOUR DOOM, FOR I AM THE BANE OF GIANTS!_

Julia shook her head as her senses returned and she partly regained control over her body. She shuddered shaking off the bone-chilling experience of having a goddess speaking through her. Eris was not gone completely. Julia still felt the presence of the goddess inside her. When she breathed red mist evaporated from her mouth and nostrils up into the air.

"I wouldn't think you would stoop so low as to possess a demigod," Pallas responded, "but know this Goddess of Chaos, it is not I who shall fall today, but in fact it will be this little girl you now control, FOR I AM THE BANE OF ATHENA!"

_"I thought that was your brother, Enceladus? Oh, I forgot, you're just a lowly imitation," _Julia/Eris replied.

Pallas had had enough and let out an enraged bellow before she charged. Every stride she took caused the earth to rumble. She didn't care if she crushed Heroes or monsters in the process, she only wanted Julia's head on a stick. Julia prepared herself for impact, but at the last possible moment, before Pallas was on her, she charged forward and rolled under the giantess's legs. Julia got back to her feet only to be smacked with the flat of a sword blade. She was flung a good twenty feet backwards. Before she could recover, Pallas was coming at her again, this time she was breathing fire. Julia barley had enough time to dodge the flames almost having her eyebrows singed off. The fire breath was a huge distraction that left Julia open for attack and once again she was whacked backward by the flat of a sword blade. She was lucky that she wasn't cleaved in two by the humungous blade. Julia landed hard on a patch of boulders that couldn't be considered Tempurpedic material. Julia rose to her feet slowly and cracked her back relieving some of the pain and loosening stiff muscles and joints. She tried to step forward but she sunk to her knees due to the sensation of a thousand needles stabbing her ankle. Julia looked down at her foot and became dizzy at the sight of her injury. She was convinced her foot should not have been physically able to point in that direction.

_Don't worry child. I won't let you die when there is still work to be done, at least not yet. Let me worry about the ankle._

"Make it fast," Julia responded through gritted teeth.

Pallas was still advancing on her but was no longer charging. She was marching, taking her time, and she wore the most arrogant grin on her goat face. Apparently, she had already determined the winner of the contest.

"You may have killed Leon, child," said Pallas, "but that is only one of many of my Giant brothers. Soon, the rest of my siblings shall rise from this Earth and they will create a storm so vast that they will shudder you!"

"Hurry up please!" Julia hissed to Eris. In return she got another sharp pain from her ankle that shot up her spine. "All right, I get it, but you need fix my foot a little faster! Goat-bitch is getting dangerously close."

_I'm going as quickly as I can! I am the chaos goddess, not the goddess of magical healing._

Pallas was only a few yards away now. She was a mountain, the way she loomed over Julia, casting a great shadow that blotted out the sun. Godly healing may be fast but it wasn't fast enough. Inwardly Julia summed up the situation she was in, _I'm screwed._

The giantess raised her massive sword. "I fare thee well daughter of Athena!"

However, like lightning bolt of nowhere, a dark streak exploded into Pallas's chest. The force of the impact was so great it knocked her off her footing and sent her colliding into a mountain. The dark streak bounced off Pallas's chest and landed next to Julia. All this had happened in a blink of an eye. When the dust cleared Julia looked to the dark streak, her savior, her shield.

It was the biggest wolf she had ever seen in her life. Nay, it was not a wolf but a lycanthrope. It had dark red eyes of hate, viscously sharp fangs, and a thick coat of dark fur. If it stood fully on it's hind quarters it would have been at least seven feet tall. The monstrous animal looked as if it weighed close to two-hundred pounds of pure muscle. It was growling belligerently while showing it's wicked pearly white fangs. However, it's aggressive attitude was not directed to Julia but to Pallas. Julia was mystified by the wolf's reasons. Wasn't Lycaon and his wolves serving Gaea? Why did this one save Julia? Didn't Tyler kill all of the werewolves? There was something different about that lycanthrope compared to rest of it's kin. It had shaggy fur unlike any werewolf Julia had ever seen and the way it stood defensively in front of Julia, looking to Pallas, and snarling protectively.

Julia recalled the wounds that killed Tyler. A werewolf bite to his neck. When a person gets bitten by a lycanthrope, and if they survive, they change. They turn into one of them. Realization struck Julia just like the wolf had struck Pallas a few moments before.

"Tyler?"

The wolf answered her with a bark. This was not a warning bark or an angry bark but one of determination and confidence.

"Oh my gods..." Julia gasped studying her old friend with a new light.

Julia's mind raced with the current events. What was going to happen to Tyler? How would this affect their future? There was no more time to ponder on it for Pallas had withdrawn herself from the mountain and was once again facing them. Pallas face was covered in dirt and blood and she wore a look of fury.

"What are you doing you filthy mutt? We're on the same side!" Pallas interrogated with fury.

Tyler responded by barking at her and then charge forward. Julia no longer felt the pain in her ankle and magically her foot was set back to it's normal position. She hopped to her feet, picked up her weapons, and followed her friend into battle. Tyler, Julia, and Eris were one as they rushed Pallas who came to meet them; but she was no match for the ferocity and rage of all three spirits combined. Tyler who had always fought with the cunning and speed of wolf, even as a human, appeased to his primordial calling. He snapped with his teeth, slashed with his fangs, and crushed with his jaws. Tyler multiplied himself as he darted from position to position and attacked from various angles. Julia, drawing on the knowledge of Eris, was able to remember the first Giant War and used it to her advantage. She dodge the giant's sword swings and counter with her own. Pallas desperately breathed columns of fire and swung wildly hoping to make contact with her aggressors.

Between pants Pallas droned. "You-_huff_-can't-_huff_-defeat-_huff_-ME!"

Pallas was pushed back to where the fig first began; in front of Death's Doors. She was bleeding from wounds all over and she was exhausted from trying to keep up with the two wild demons chopping at her legs. As a last ditch effort, she dropped her weapons and grabbed a hold of Tyler's tail and prepared to throw him into portal behind Death's Doors. Julia and Eris, as one, screamed in protest. Julia threw her maikhra like a throwing knife and it struck Pallas in the eye. Pallas's free hand shot to her face and she screamed in pain and fell to her knees, releasing her grip on Tyler.

Julia ran forward with trench knife in hand and attacked Pallas in a blind fury. She mimicked all of Tyler's techniques. She stabbed and slashed with the blade, she punched with he brass knuckles, and pounded with the skullcrusher. Julia was no longer fighting Pallas but everything; the gods, the world, corruption, evil, depression, fear, poverty, disease, the Giants, and all the contents that had escaped Pandora's Box. She projected every emotion she felt into the blade of that WWII trench knife; fear, anger, hate.

When stopping to catch her breath Julia realized she had managed to push Pallas underneath frame of Death's Doors. The giant was only inches away from falling back in to the swirling black portal that lead to the Underworld. To prevent herself from being sucked in; she frantically gripped the frame of the doors with an iron grip. Anguish was struck on Pallas's goat face and it showed clear as day. She was obviously not going back to Tartarus without a fight and it would take a freight train to push her into the portal.

"Need a hand," Percy Jackson suggested from her side.

"How about several?" Jason Grace added.

They were accompanied by Frank, Hazel, Piper, and Leo, the complete fellowship of the Prophecy of Seven, all together at last. Something within the seven half-bloods took over all of them and they began to act out of instinct. Frank turned into an elephant and rammed Pallas in the chest. The giantess let out a moan but still she held her grip. Percy used the power of the ocean to summon hurricane winds that pushed on Pallas. Jason followed suit and called on the power of his father's domain to summon winds of his own. The combined winds of Poseidon and Zeus were so powerful and self-aware that they started to pluck up Carthaginians, Immortals, evil men, and monsters throughout the valley; even the corpses were taken. The Axis of Evil held on to anything they could wrap their fingers around for dear life, but it was to no avail. The winds lifted the evil forces into the air and flung them through the entrance of Death's Doors and into the portal which sucked them back into the depths of the Underworld. Pallas continued to cling on for all she was worth.

"My sword!" Julia called.

Hazel used her control over metal to dislodge Julia's sword telepathically from Pallas's eye and gently returned it to Julia.

"LET GO!" Piper commanded Pallas using Charm Speak. Slowly, the giant's grip began to loosen.

Pallas was only hanging on by her fingertips. One more push and back to the underworld she would go. Julia charged forward with her sword and trench knife. Leo engulfed himself in flames and flew after the daughter of Athena. As Julia bounded forward she felt a warm feeling within in her. It was the exact feeling she had felt when she first saw her mother smile.

At the same time Julia stabbed Pallas; Leo let loose a burst of fire from his palms. The flames intertwined with Julia's weapons. The blades sunk deep within Pallas's gut. Ichor spewed everywhere, Pallas screamed, and her body was engulfed with a fire that spread across her skin and etched up her face. Pallas threw her head to the sky and breathed a column of her own fire skyward to relieve the pressure collecting with in her. Her screams echoed throughout the Valley of Death's Doors. The flames shot to the heavens like fireworks and left an imprint in the sky.

"ATHENA!" Pallas screamed over and over again cursing in anger in her inability to exact vengeance on her past life's killer.

The fire created an image of a great and wise owl with an olive wreath in it's talons.

_The Mark of Athena burns through Rome._

Pallas let out one final gasp before exploding into a million bits that was sucked into the portal. The wind in the entire valley picked up and the screams of Pallas echoed. Hazel raised both hands, felt the presence of metal in death's doors, and slammed them shut telepathically. The screams of the dead died down when Death's Doors closed shut with a loud bang.

"KEY!" Jason yelled to Perseus without wasting anytime.

Perseus nodded and threw Jason the plain old Schlage key that they had retrieved from Vatican City. Jason caught it and ran to lock the doors. When the key was inches away from the lock it magically transformed into an old fashioned skeleton key made of bones. Jason inserted it into the lock and twisted it to the right. There was a loud click followed by banging noises which Jason hoped signified that the doors were sealed shut.

A silence washed over the Atlas Mountains. Everyone stood mystified. The Argonauts, demigods, Hunters, animals, satyrs, mortals, centaurs, and warriors all stood silently with their mouths gapping. They dropped their weapons and pulled off their helmets and sunk to their knees in exhaustion. Some even started to cry. They had done it. The Argonauts managed to complete their suicide mission. It was over. The Heroes of Olympus had won the battle. Death's Doors were shut.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review please and if you haven't already hit that favorite button, you can do so bellow, and it's much appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed and questions and comments will be answered. If you add the story or review you also get a high-five. Note that I just gave you one for incentive.<strong>**


	26. The Fire Rises

Percy sharply inhaled in disbelief as he watched the gears of Death's Doors clink and lock into place. They had done it. Many had told them they would fail but in the end the Argonauts pulled through and made the impossible, possible. A wave of euphoria washed over his body as he stood in awe for a few moments more before slowly sinking to his knees from exhaustion and relief.

"That's it...its over." Leo managed to say, "ITS OVER!" The dark skinned teenager broke into fits of laughter and then proceeded to hug and kiss the nearest person on the cheek.

Chiron beamed and nodded in triumph. When he was satisfied that the battle was indeed won, he declared if for all the world to here:

"VICTORY IS OURS!"

The Atlas Mountains erupted with roars of elation. The wolves howled, the centaurs clicked their hooves, the pegasi neighed, the satyrs played their flutes, the cyclops bellowed, and the heroes from across the globe cheered. Many laughed and embraced one an other with tears of joy streaming down their cheeks. What was once a battlefield had magically transformed into a peace rally. Everyone was ecstatic...everyone except the Argonauts. Yes, casualties were suffered from every sect and loss was felt by all, but the Argonauts had taken the most damage. They came to the Atlas Mountains with a force of eight-hundred and they would leave with only a little more than half that number. They were bloodied, depressed, and exhausted...but never broken.

Percy studied the faces of his fellow Argonauts that surrounded him. In each one of them he saw despair and confusion in their eyes. Some of the Argonauts had sunk to their knees as Percy did. They all wore a coat of dirt, sweat, and blood on their faces. Their bones, joints, and muscles screamed from fatigue and their hearts were weighted with sadness. Many of them had dispersed throughout the valley searching for the bodies of their fallen comrades and their lost loved ones. Others were left speechless by the monumental shock of victory or the denial of their friends' demise.

Upon seeing many around him drowning in tears of sorrow Percy almost began to cry himself as the deaths of many of his friends replayed in his head. He felt the eyes of many upon him and so he swallowed the pain and choked back the tears. He understood his role clearly. He was a leader to many of his fellow Argonauts and hundreds of heroes looked up to him. If he couldn't be strong then none of them could. Death's Doors may have been closed but there was a long road ahead and each and every one of them needed to be at their best. Percy struggled to his feet and quickly brushed a tear away from his cheek as familiar faces approached him. Annabeth, Tyson, Grover, Jason, Piper, Leo, Frank, Hazel, Chris Lopez, Will Solace, Reyna, Butch, Clarisse, Nico, Malcolm, Mrs. O'Leary, Thalia, the Stolls, Katie Gardener, and others walked up and shook his hand or hugged him. He was exhilarated that many of his friends were still alive and breathing albeit exhausted with some wounds. Piper's right hand was broken, Annabeth had an ugly gash on her forehead, and everyone else had the usually cuts and bruises. There wasn't a single person in the valley who wasn't suffering from a wound of some sort but they would live. However the thought that reminded Percy of those who weren't so lucky.

Among the Argonauts remaining the Heroes of Old were the most defeated. Theseus tried hard to keep his cold demeanor but he failed due to the odd twitches in the corner of his lips. Hercules sat on his bottom as he hung his head between his legs while Perseus patted him on the shoulder. Odysseus looked bone tired as he leaned against his massive longbow. The most dejected of them all was Achilles. His skin was deathly pale and his face was a blank slate of emptiness. At that very moment Percy understood why the Heroes of Old seemed so detached and pessimistic when they first arrived at Camp Jupiter from the Underworld. They had spent the entirety or their previous lives witnessing the deaths of all their loved ones and soldiers. That begged the question of why would anyone in their right mind ever want to relive that? Percy always viewed the Heroes of Old in a spotlight of awe and even admired them to an extent, but seeing them there, he pitied them.

Percy was drawn from his thoughts when warm fingers tangled with his own. A few hours ago he believed he would never feel the same sensation again. He was overjoyed that he got another chance too cling to the tenderness of his girlfriends hand.

"Hey," Annabeth greeted softly helping Percy stand to his feet.

Percy grunted in response, "We did it Wise Girl."

"We did," she replied in the same tone.

"But at what cost?" Octavian said joining the couple.

Percy looked off into the mountains before answering,"Before we came here we believed that none of us would survive. They called this a suicide mission but look what we've accomplished." Percy replied trying to remain optimistic.

"I don't know dude," said Leo softly which was a rarity. "I mean with all the people we've lost I'm beginning to wonder if it would have been better that we all died. That way I wouldn't have to feel this crappy."

"Don't talk like that dude," Jason said sternly, as if Leo's words pained him.

"Yeah, sorry man," Leo apologized absently.

The group of friends stood in front of Death's Doors analyzing it's wooden gates. To the naked eye the doors were plain. Two wooden double-doors with bronze handles. There was nothing special about them but the heroes knew better.

"Interesting," said Thalia.

"What?" Annabeth asked.

"The King of the Jokes is starting to sound grimmer than the Heroes of Old," she tried to smile but winced because of her bruised cheeks. She expected a people to laugh but no one did and she didn't blame them.

The expected retaliation from Leo never came. Instead he merely gave Thalia a weak shrug of his shoulders.

"HAZEL!" a boy yelled from behind them.

All eyes turned to see a pale skinned boy clad in dark clothes and an aviator jacket sprint toward them.

"NICO!" Hazel said with a huge smile as she recognized her brother.

She released herself from Frank and ran up to her half-sibling. They met half way and wrapped each other in a bear hug.

"I'm glad you're okay," she said into his chest.

"Yeah, I am too," he said with a grin and then looked to Percy. "Sup Percy?"

"The sky," his cousin responded

Nico smiled at the response and then embraced the remainder of his friends and integrated himself into the group of teenage warriors who stood in silence admiring the complexity of the wooden doors that lead into the Underworld. They stood there a long time without speaking, allowing themselves to absorb the reality of the situation they were in, and the precedent they had set for the future.

Piper finally piped up, "So, what now?"

She was answered by an unfamiliar voice, "That all depends daughter of Aphrodite."

All heads swiveled to the speaker. It was a young blonde girl with piercing grey eyes who had a slight resemblance to Annabeth. It took Percy several moments before he completely recognized her. She looked very different from when they first met at the Vatican. Here she looked a lot older, more mature, colder. The girl was Julia Myers and at her side was the biggest lycanthrope that any of them had ever seen. The group of teenagers gasped at the sight of the beast. Jason and Percy drew their swords and the werewolf responded by leaping in front of Julia defensively while snarling and barring its fangs

Before Jason and Percy could strike at the monster Julia raised her hands and screamed in protest, "STOP!"

Jason and Percy managed to halt themselves in mid-stroke. Hesitantly they sheathed their swords and shot Julia questioning looks. The werewolf continued to growl while everyone dagger-eyed at Julia and the wolf. They all viewed the daughter of Athena as either traitor or monster, or both.

"Julia," Nico managed to say confused. His response seemed to affect her the most out of all of the others causing her to wince at his tone.

"Do you have any idea what that thing is?" Jason accused.

"Obviously!" Julia fired back, "I'm not an idiot but he's not what you think he is."

"I think its pretty clear from where I'm standing," said Octavian. "That's a vicious, man-eating werewolf and we need to kill it."

Julia sighed before answering. "_It_ is a _he_, and _he_ is Tyler."

Everyone was taken aback by her answer.

"Wait, what?" Leo said with a dumb expression on his face.

Julia let out a sigh of exasperation and prepared to explain. Percy could have sworn that she looked like she was about to cry but she maintained her composure. Before she could open her mouth a giant cloud of color changing smoke erupted before them and a dark shadow phased out of Death's Doors.

There, who stood before them, was no one other than the Queen of the Gods herself and the God of Death.

"Hello children!" Hera exclaimed. "May we have a word please?" the goddess said with a fake smile.

* * *

><p>It was amazing how quickly Hera could summon a council and have the councilors organized on such a short notice. They met in large cavern away from the main army to allow privacy. The council was composed of the Prophecy of Seven members, the councilors of the Camp Half-Blood cabins, the Centurions of Camp Jupiter, Lupa, Chiron, Tyson, Grover, the Heroes of Old, various minor gods, ILH operatives, Queen Hylla and Reyna, Thalia and Phoebe, Thanatos, and Hera. As for the whereabouts of the major gods, only guesses could be made. Everyone there were seated in chairs or thrones that encompassed the circumference of the cavern, creating an open ring in the center, Hera's throne of course being the most grand and large. The purpose of the council was to discuss the future of the world.<p>

"The first topic on the agenda is the discussion of the existence of the ILH," Hera declaimed. Everyone remained silent. "The League was meant to remain hidden from the main half-blood population but that's all out the window now. We need to discuss the terms of a treaty."

"Why?" an anonymous person voiced.

"To prevent war, my dear," Hera answered in a politely mocking tone.

"Reyna, Octavian, Percy Jackson, Jason Grace, and Julia Meyers, the representatives of each party, step forward please."

The five of them got out of their seats and entered the center of the ring.

"Let us cut to the chase! Do you all swear on the River Styx swear to prevent war at all costs between your two parties?"

"We swear on the River Styx not start a civil war between demigods," said the five of them in unison as if they had rehearsed it beforehand.

"Excellent," said Hera. "That went a lot smoother than I expected. You may sit. Now, on to the next matter of discussion."

Nico zoned out and took his time to analyze the ILH operatives. Although he had spent a week in their presence he still felt they were a mystery. They were built of dozens of teenagers of different sizes, ages, and races. Each ILH operative represented a country that had a demigod presence of some sort. Each operative fought as the greatest warrior that their country's history had to offer. There were two members from every country, a boy and girl. The two representatives sat in chairs under their nation's flag. The two that sat in front of the Japanese flag were a samurai and ninja. Those who sat under a European flag were usually medieval knights. The Irish reps were Celts and so on. Most countries only had one representative due to the fact that there was limited amount of demigods throughout the world. The only country that wasn't required to have two representatives was Canada and America. That being because they were the current home of the gods with an already powerful demigod presence. The North American continent only needed two representatives and them being Tyler and Julia.

Nico's mind wandered to the minor gods. He recognized many of them. There was Morpheus wrapped in a blanket, Iris dressed in her hippy garb, Nemesis in her cloak, Phobos and Deimos dressed in their brutal looking armor, and several others. The most praiseworthy of the group was Zeus's personal lieutenants, his main military advisors when Athena and Ares were otherwise occupied. They were Nike, Kratos, Bia, and Zelus. Nico sized up every minor god present till he reached the end of the list. The last one seated was Eris. She made Phobos and Deimos seem like cuddly kittens. Her skin was blanketed in tattoos of latin and ancient greek, some in english, chinese, spanish, and other languages. Her eyes were fixed on Tyler laying at Julia's feet, or the werewolf presumed to be Tyler. Eris scowled at the wolf and then shifted her eyes to Hera and then back to the wolf. She did this the entire time as Hera spoke. Nico could've sworn he saw the smoke billowing from her pupils.

Nico followed Eris's gaze and studied the wolf. It was big and scary looking. That was all he could establish about it. Nico had never met Tyler before so he couldn't say Julia was lying about him being the werewolf only but then again Julia wasn't a liar. He could only take Julia's word and that was all Nico really needed to believe her. Although they had only met each other a week before the two of them had grown to be close friends.

As the minor gods continued to argue amongst themselves Nico's thoughts shifted to Julia. She sat with her legs crossed in her chair under the Canadian flag while she twirled a strand of her blonde hair around the tip of her pointer finger the way she did when she was deep in thought. He became entranced with her piercing grey eyes and lost himself within them. Usually her eyes gleamed with determination but as they shifted to the empty seat next to her underneath the American flag where Tyler should have been sitting, they became glimmering pools on the verge of tears.

Nico thought back on the past few days he had spent with her. He had learned things about the daughter of Athena that not even her fellow ILH operatives knew. When they weren't training or preparing for their assault on Death's Doors, both of them spent their off duty hours together, talking about each other's lives. Even with all the events happening around them they still managed to find the time to discuss subject completely unrelated to the matters at hand. They spoke about their favorite movies, music, food, and other unimportant things. Small talk helped them cope with enormity of the task ahead of them.

They found out they had many things in common with each other. Both of their childhoods was spent trying to survive, they both had parents that neglected them, and they were both missing people close to them. Julia was searching for Tyler and Nico longed to return to Hazel and wished that Bianca was still with him. That was the main reason they were drawn to each other. Something was missing from their very beings and they filled the void with each other.

Julia spoke about Tyler frequently and Nico couldn't help but feel a little jealous of him. Nico studied the werewolf that was presumed to be Tyler. If the animal was in fact Tyler, then Nico was happy that the two were reunited but it was also depressing to think about how Julia's longtime friend was turned into a monster. The pang of jealous emerged to the front of his thoughts again and he mentally slapped himself for feeling that way.

"Now on to the matter of the empty seat on the ILH council," Hera said sharply pulling Nico from his thoughts.

All eyes diverted their attention to the empty seat under the America flag next to Julia.

Eris shot to her feet, "My Lady, we have already discussed that the seat is not empty! My son still retains his position!"

"Your son is hereby dismissed from active duty," Hera said harshly.

"On what terms?" Eris demanded with rage.

By this time Julia was on her feet as well and the werewolf was barking. Many others climbed out of their chairs and drew their weapons. Out of the corner of his eye Nico could see Chiron trying to retain the peace but it was to no avail. Hera rolled her eyes as the shouting level continued to rise.

"How dare you?" Julia shouted, "After all he has done for you and this council?"

"Silence!" Hera commanded and that was all it took for order to return. Everyone was back in their seats.

Julia and Eris remained standing though.

"Nike," Hera commanded, "control your soldier!"

Nike stood up furiously. "Lieutenant, I'd advise for you to take your seat!"

Julia crossed her arms defiantly but she sat down. She couldn't betray her years of training and obedience. Nothing was done about Eris because they knew that no one can control chaos. She was silent, still standing, but ignored.

Hera put her face into her palm and sighed, "Nike step forward."

The goddess of speed and victory walked to the center of the ring in front of Hera's throne.

"My lady?" Nike asked.

"By being the primary advisor and supervisor for the International League of Heroes, could you please explain to the council the prerequisites needed to become an operative within the League?"

Nike answered promptly. "They must have a bloodline connected to an immortal being, must be under the age of twenty, and they cannot be compromised by the enemy in any way."

"Where is Tyler Horace now?" Hera asked.

"I believe he is that lycanthrope sitting next to Lieutenant Myers, my lady. He became compromised during the battle when the lycanthrope Lycaon bit him and infected him with the lycanthropy virus."

Many of the ILH operatives drew breathe upon the confirmation that one of them had actually been transformed into a werewolf. Apparently, Julia had not told them yet.

"Could that be considered as being, 'compromised by the enemy?'" Hera asked using air quotations.

"Yes, ma'am," Nike answered after gulping nervously while watching the furious Eris in the corner of her eye.

Nico noticed the blatant fear the other gods had of Eris and he couldn't blame them.

Hera looked to Eris who was still standing, "Satisfied."

"Of course not," Eris snapped. "He can be changed back!"

"Eris may I remind you it's a gift that were even allowing that abomination to live. You of all of deities should know that we cannot merely, 'change,' him back. It has been three thousand years since the foundation of lycanthropy and a permanent cure has not been discovered. Not even the power of the gods can alter it because we were the ones who created the curse to be unbreakable in the first place" Hera informed her.

Eris shook her head irreverently. "Good going that did," she added sarcastically.

Nico couldn't believe how cold Hera was being. The embarrassment on Eris's face was as plain as day. Of all places to humiliate someone Hera chose to do it in front of all that person's colleagues and underlings.

Hera locked eyes with Iris and sighed, caving in. "Fine, I'll make Tyler this deal," said Hera. "We major gods do have the power to convert a lycanthrope back to human form just long enough for them to manifest their final wishes before we destroy them. I will allow this privilege to grant Lieutenant Horace the right formally step down from his position and say his final goodbyes. He can then choose to remain a lycanthrope or make his way to the Underworld. I believe either way he will serve his purpose to me."

"That's not good enough!" Eris dictated.

"Take it or leave it," Hera responded apathetically while whisking the proposition away.

Eris stared Hera down for a full on minute before reluctantly retaking her seat violently.

She muttered the word, "Deal."

Hera nodded and snapped her fingers. Nico shrunk in his seat like almost everyone in the cavern who were expecting something big to happen. All eyes were fixed on Tyler as they watched him begin to howl. Slowly the fur began to shed, the fangs shrunk, and the wolf stood on it's hind legs. Within seconds the massive wolf transformed into human teenage boy wearing ripped jeans, an Argonaut t-shirt, and a full head of shaggy long hair. Nico noticed Julia barley keeping herself together but somehow she managed to do it.

When the transformation was complete Tyler hunched over and rested his hands on his knees while panting.

"Holy crap," he murmured gasping for oxygen.

It took him a couple minutes till he regained his composure but when he did, he stood fully upright, and scanned those that sat around him. Hera nodded to Nike.

"Tyler Horace," Nike boomed. "Step forward."

Tyler didn't protest or hesitate. He understood what was happening and what was needed to be done. His walk up to Nike seemed to last an eternity.

"Tyler Horace," began Nike, "with the power vested in me and the gods of Olympus I hereby humbly relinquish you of your ILH operative status. Do you accept honorably?"

"I do," Tyler answered confidently.

"You must turn in your weapon of power," Nike told him.

"My grandfather's trench knife, I have passed it down to Julia Myers," he answered.

Nike nodded, "You are now officially relieved of your duties. May the Fates be with you child."

Tyler nodded and then faced Hera.

"Are you aware of your options?" the mother goddess asked him.

"Yes, ma'am."

"What is your choice then?"

"Life," he answered softly, "I choose life. I will continue on as a lycanthrope my lady." Tyler turned away from Hera and addressed the council. "I will not do it to continue the bloodline of evil but I believe I am not done here! I still have work to do and I'm not quite finished. I will not rest until Gaea is dead."

"Your words are noble but do you understand that you will not be able to go back? This is the point of no return."

"I do."

"All right, I will give you a few moments to say your last words as a demigod," Hera told him.

Tyler looked at Eris and Nico could've sworn he saw a tear drip down her cheek but the whole time she looked at her son with pride. They traded nods to each other like they had some sort of silent understanding. Tyler then walked over to Julia who had now completely abandoned the idea of holding onto professionalism. She let the tears flow freely. He knelt in front of her, whispered something in her ear, and squeezed her tightly.

Tyler stood back up and again faced Hera. With assertion he said, "I'm ready."

"May I add something my lady?" asked Lupa the she-wolf.

"Speak," Hera allowed.

"My pack is willing to take in Tyler Horace as one of our own, if that's all right," said Lupa.

Hera considered this. "What say you Horace?"

"It would be an honor," he answered.

"Nothing else my lady," finished Lupa.

"Then Tyler Horace...may the Fates guide you," Hera finished and then snapped her fingers.

Tyler's muscles clenched as he sunk to his knees. He let out a low moan as his nose elongated into a snout, his clothes were substituted with long shaggy fur, and a tail grew from his backside. His grunts turned into growls and whimpers till finally he was a werewolf again. When the transformation was complete he looked to the sky and let out a long howl. Tyler trotted over to Julia and lazily laid at her feet. Julia let out one last sob before pulling herself together.

There was a few awkward moments of silence before Hera began to speak again. "Now on to the business of Mr. Horace's replacement," said Hera to Nike. "Who have you chose as a suitable candidate?"

Without hesitation Nike shouted, "Nico di Angelo!"

It was at the exact moment that Nico was taking a sip of water causing him to choke on his sip.

"Wait-what-who-me?" Nico stuttered. "Why?"

"Don't make us regret our choice boy," Nike said annoyed. "Now, step forward," Nike ordered him.

Nico cleared his throat awkwardly and shifted in his chair.

Hazel who sat in the chair behind him whispered in his ear encouragingly, "Go on."

Nico scanned his friends around him who were all giving him nods of support or flashed him proud smiles. Nico's eye fell on Julia. She was no longer crying and her usual smart ass expression had returned. She masked her emotions well but when she noticed Nico looking at her she flashed him a beautiful smile and nodded at him reassuringly.

Nico nervously rose from his chair and he slowly made his way to the Goddess of Victory. He felt everyone's eyes on him. The steady gazes held by the ILH operatives burned a whole through his very being. He knew what they were doing, it was like being the new kid at school, they were sizing him up. He stopped abruptly when he was directly in front of Nike.

"Nico di Angel, it is the decision of the gods to grant you the privileges of being an operative representing the international community of heroes. ILH operatives are not trained but chosen. Individuals forged in the fire of service and battle, those whose actions elevate them beyond others. ILH agents are a symbol and the embodiment of courage, determination, and self-reliance. They are the sword and shield of the Olympian council, instruments of their will. Operatives of the League bear a great burden. They are protecters of international peace, but our first and last line of defense. The safety of the world is theirs to uphold. You have proven yourself worthy. Do you accept the duties of a fully fledged brother of the League?"

"I do," Nico said trying to sound as tough as possible.

Nico could hear his heart beating in his chest and he felt as if his stomach was going to jump out of his mouth. Nico had always been a lone wolf and he didn't play well with others but he always wondered what it would be like to be part of something bigger than himself. The ILH seemed different from anything he had every considered doing in his life. Maybe this was his chance to prove to everybody that he wasn't...he scoffed at himself for not even understanding his social status.

"Cover your heart with the pointer, middle, and index fingers of your right hand and repeat after me," prompted Nike.

"I (state your name)..."

"I Nico di Angelo..."

"Shall fight in the name of the justice, peace, and the gods..."

"Shall fight in the name of the justice, peace, and the gods..."

"...will forever uphold the values of heroism..."

"...will forever uphold the values of heroism..."

"...and will defend those who cannot defend themselves..."

"...and will defend those who cannot defend themselves..."

"...Or I will die trying."

"...Or I will die trying."

Nike rotated her body with her arms outstretched to face everyone gathered around the council. She finished her circle by facing Nico again. "By the power vested in me by the River Styx, witnessed bared by those gathered here today, I declare Nico di Angelo the son of Hades, the new North American representative and operative for the International League of Heroes. Welcome to the League!"

Nike then took her palm and pressed it on the inside of Nico's right forearm. The skin where she touched felt like he was being branded with cow-prod dipped in greek fire. Nico felt the eyes watching him and did his best to grimace as little as possible. Nike removed her palm to reveal a newly formed emblem imprinted into his arm. It was of a great eagle with it's wings spread perching it's self impressively on top of a mountain that Nico assumed to be the original Mt. Olympus. As soon as the emblem manifested itself it vanished leaving only the pale bare skin of his forearm.

"You have been branded with the invisible seal of the League. May the Fates watch over you and the Immortals guide you," Nike finished.

There was a hearty round of applause especially from the section where Percy and his other friends were sitting. Leo Valdez was out of his chair and was whistling sharply with in his fingers in his mouth. Nico's now fellow ILH operatives clapped politely but unenthusiastically. They either really didn't care or they were as good as Julia when it came to hiding their emotions.

"You may take you seat next to your fellow representative," Nike told him.

Nico nodded and he walked over to the seat next to Julia. He sat in the chair underneath the American flag next to her.

"Good job kid," she said to him.

"Congratulations," said Hanzo on the other side of him who patted his shoulder.

"Thanks," he told both of them.

Julia laughed, "If you knew what you've gotten yourself into you wouldn't be thanking us."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked offended.

Someone behind him tapped him on the shoulder. Nico turned to find a dark skinned boy sitting behind him underneath the Filipino flag grinning.

"Believe her," the boy said, "your training starts tomorrow and its a bitch!"

Before Nico could reply a furry body rubbed up against his leg almost causing him to jump out of his seat. It was Tyler. The werewolf growled at him but it was not one of menace or friendship it was more of warning that said, _don't screw this up._

"Now we can finally move one," said Hera pompously. "To the next matter of business."

Thanatos took his turn to stand up from his seat. He stepped forward and made his way to the center of the ring.

"Lord Hades has allowed me to grant you heroes a gift. That gift being I can bring those who have fallen in the previous battle back to life-"

A commotion of confusion, joy, and horror erupted within the cavern but it was quickly silenced by Hera. Being a mom for 3000 years teaches you something about remaining in control.

Thanatos cleared his throat. "However, the deal is that I can only bring them back for a few moments so they can say their final farewells. I am also in charge of the, 'corpse disposal.' I am willing to send their bodies back to their loved ones in order to give them a proper burial. Luckily all of the evils working for Pallas was vacuumed by my doors so I can focus my attention on your fallen comrades. After this meeting concludes we will have the funeral ceremony and that is when the resurrections will take place. That is all." He nodded and made his way back to his seat.

Nico, being the son of Hades understood death. What his father was allowing was a dangerous gamble. Many would see this as act as compassion but in reality it was rather cruel. It was similar to dangling the cure to cancer in front of a cancer patients faces' and then taking it from them. Even so, from experience, Nico learned that if a god gives you a "gift," you take it, no questions asked. Also, from the reaction around him, everyone mostly thought it was a good idea and they looked happy. All he wanted was his friends to be happy.

There were a few moments of silence due to contemplation on Thanatos's offer and then Hera took the floor again.

"Onto the final order of business. You heroes of Olympus have achieved a great victory for our side today. You have done what was thought to be the impossible but the sad truth is that this was merely a distraction. A distraction to draw us away from Gaea's true intentions. While we had all our focus on Death's Doors, she used the opportunity to raise the remaining of her Giant children, and then herself. Gaea is awake and she walks the earth again. They have accomplished their mission and as we speak they are gathering their forces and are marching on the original Mount Olympus. My fellow major gods are already there and they are setting up defenses. Truthfully, It won't be enough. Gaea's forces are somewhere in the millions and she has the aid of Khione, other traitors, and many old powerful forces on her side. In order to stop the Giants we need heroes and gods working together. Here, in the Atlas Mountains, you will make preparations as fast as possible. You will train and gather resources. Then you shall make your journey to Greece to aid us in the final battle. The Argo III has already been built by my son Hephaestus and it is on it's way here. You will board the ship and it will transport you when you are ready. As of now I must return to my family and aid them in the battle preparations. That is all from me."

"Wait, what about our deal?" Odysseus chimed in.

"What?" Hera asked almost offended.

"If we helped you, we would get what we demanded," Theseus told her.

Hera looked as if she was about to whisk them out of existence.

"Well, what we're trying to tell you is that the deal can wait," answered Hercules.

"We will continue to fight on in the next campaign and aid our younger brethren!" said Perseus.

The Argonauts were ecstatic about the news and cheered. Hera shut her eyes, annoyed, and waited for the hubbub to die down. Their immaturity offended her.

Hera closed her eyes, searching her brain to make sure she hadn't missed anything. "Ah, yes the discussion of the current Great Prophecy, well, it seems it all worked out very neatly. Julia Meyers was revealed to be the daughter of wisdom who walked alone, Leo Valdez brought the world down in fire, the supposed Roman and Greek enemies worked together to seal Death's Doors, and the Heroes of Old sacrificed themselves for their successors to repent for their past sins, and by doing so they have freed themselves. It appears there is no need to talk about it further unless more of the prophecy unveils itself but currently there has been no indication there is more...but knowing the Fates, there will be. One more thing, The Heroes of Old will continue to remain in charge of your training and military tactics. Achilles you're still the main general and in charge of everyone, that even includes the ILH. Gather your troops, compile your resources and information, and complete the mission. Good luck Heroes of Olympus...and close your eyes."

Everyone shut theirs eyes as Hera and the other minor gods morphed into their true forms. When they opened their eyes again all the gods were gone except for Thanatos.

* * *

><p>The funeral ceremony was held later in the evening just before the sun was about to set. To Nico, it was the most bizarre thing that he had ever experienced in his entire existence, and in all honesty he had experienced many bizarre things. Between being preserved for almost century in a casino filled with arcade games, finding out he was the son of the Lord of the Underworld, talking to ghost, and fighting monsters...the funeral ceremony took the cake.<p>

Thanatos had already sent the bodies back to their homes when the spirits started to mingle with the living. The spirits where pale, blue, transparent figures. Basically, they were ghost. They looked like their previous living selves but in reality they were no where close to the originals, just a sad memory, like a photograph. Having first hand experience with trying to speak to the dead, Nico strongly held the belief that things that are dead should stay dead. Half-bloods of all people should understand this point due to the fact that they fight monsters that try to eat them who can reincarnate themselves. Nico did not approve of this, 'gift,' but it seemed to make his friends, 'happy,' and who was he to say otherwise?

Nico was used to speaking to the dead but the majority of the Heroes of Olympus were not. He observed people beginning to break down in tears as soon as they saw their deceased friends. Others just clammed up from the outlandishness of the situation and stood there, shaking at the knees. As Nico walked through the masses of heroes he overheard and witnessed the most depressing and Oscar worthy conversations. One example where the ghostly figures of the original Jason and Media who loomed over a sobbing Leo Valdez.

"I'm so sorry Leo," said Ghost Media. "Your mother didn't deserve what I put on her. She was a beautiful women but you see, Gaea can be very persuasive. Jason and I have changed for the better. Please believe me Leo!"

Nico walked passed by them quickly, before hearing anymore. He continued to wade through the storming sea of salty tears in which the wind was shrieks of agony. He passed by demigods trying to embrace deceased friends to only find that one does not simply hug transparent apparitions. If it was under different circumstance Nico would have laughed at the scene but at that moment it was down right sad in all definitions of the word. He wandered past Argonauts huddled around the ghost of Leonidas and the Spartans. There was Butch admiring Bellerophon and Pegasus.

The atmosphere of the Valley of Death's Doors climbed on top of Nico's shoulders and weighed him down in uncomfortableness. In order to escape the burden Nico segregated himself from the bulk of Heroes of Olympus and made his way to a nearby cliff. To his surprise he had found someone had the same idea. A blonde haired girl sat with her feet hanging off the cliff ledge while she looked off into the sunset. Next her was a six foot long shaggy-haired werewolf who rested its chin on it's forepaws, also looking into the sunset, while the girl scratched between it's ears.

Julia didn't turn to greet him, "Why if it isn't the recently made Operative Nico di Angelo of the International League of Heroes representing the American chapter?" she said playfully. "How is it going, eh?"

"In all honesty," said Nico honestly, "things are pretty...hectic. How come you're now over at the zombie fest?" Nico asked referring to the funeral ceremony.

"I can say the same for you," Julia replied.

"I'm a son of Hades. I have too much interaction with the dead as it stands."

"Fair enough," she said satisfied. "Me, I didn't lose anybody. None of the ILH operatives died and I don't know anyone else besides you from the primaries."

"Primaries?" Nico asked.

"The demigods living in the gods' host country," she explained.

Nico nodded in understanding. "Not to mention that it's creepy," he added.

"True that," she nodded in agreement. She tilted her head as she mulled something over in her mind and then patted the ground next to her, "Come sit next to me."

Nico sat down beside her with his feet also hanging off the ledge. Nico shifted uncomfortably as Tyler the werewolf glared at him with slanted eyes but continued to croon as Julia scratched behind his ear. Once he deemed he was safe from Tyler's fangs, Nico allowed himself to relax, and followed Julia's gaze off into the sunset. Saying that the view looked beautiful would be the biggest understatement of the year. The way the sun was silhouetted against the clouds with it's orangish glow and with the misty, the Atlas Mountains laid below, it was truly breathtaking. However, something else impressed him even more than the natural scenery. Nico turned his head to look at the girl he sitting next too. She was like a reflection of the natural landscape that was sprawled in front of them. Nico was finding himself thinking about Julia in this way often and whenever he did his head spun. Besides noticing her beauty though, he noticed how calm and cool she was despite current events. Nico was in awe of how well Julia was handling the whole, 'my-best-friend-who-is-like-a-brother-to-me-is-now-a-bloodthirsty-monster,' situation rather well.

He shook his head in disbelief, "How do you do it?"

"Do what?" Julia asked as if Nico yanked her from her thoughts.

"You know..." Nico mumbled.

She looked at him blankly and then smiled, "No, I don't know..."

"How do you manage to keep it together even after," he looked around him, "even after all this!" he said gesturing to the world that overwhelmed them.

Julia shrugged, "Training I guess?"

"There has to be more than just that."

She shrugged again, "I don't know. Maybe it's because of the crap that I've had to deal with my whole life, you know? You just kinda get used to it." She finished her sentence by nodding like she had found the correct answer. "Isn't that right you mangy mutt?" she added by pushing Tyler over and rubbing his belly.

Nico nodded, "I know exactly what you mean." Nico recalled all the things that had happened in his messed up life that made this war seem like a cake walk. Things only appear to be bad when you make them worse off than they really are.

"My whole life," said Julia, "I've been trained to learn from my mistakes and not letting them interfere with your future. Nike and my mom are big on, 'what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger,' mojo sorta thing."

"Hmm," Nico nodded.

"What?" Julia smiled mystified.

"Nothing, it's just that those are good words to live bye."

Julia laughed, "Oh, you're going to fit in just fine with me and the rest of the guys." She was referencing the ILH.

Nico smiled understanding the new guy treatment. He looked down to his right forearm were only an hour ago Nike had branded it with the 'invisible seal of the League.' His arm still burned from the pain and the question he had on his mind burned even worse.

"Why me?" Nico divulged. "Why pick me?"

Julia shrugged. "We operatives don't have a say on who we recruit. That's all up to my mom and Zeus's lieutenants. If I had to guess though; I would say it's because your intelligence that others lack. Then there's your courage and your past that make you conditioned to tragedy. I can see it in you. Death doesn't bother you. That's important in combat because if your buddy dies, you need to be able to keep calm, and hold the line. Above all else though, you also care about people. That's why you hold on to grudges so hard. You want those who harmed people you love to face justice. That's what the League is about, Justice. The ILH has been lacking in people like you. I've also seen you use that black sword of your's and you're pretty good with it...but don't let any of this get to your head because if you slip up it won't be just the death of you, but the others on your team. On top of all this, you're basically one of us to begin with. You went on secret missions for your dad and you participated in espionage missions sanctioned by the gods. You were practically the bitch of the gods and that's what the ILH is, the gods bitches, but I guess its not so bad, it has its perks. Nico, you have experience and you'll make a great asset to the team."

Nico nodded gratefully for Julia's words, "Thanks."

"Don't mention it," Julia said with a grin and then added her signature, "bitch."

"Jerk."

"Screw off ass-hat."

The two locked daggers eyes and held the world's most epic Mexican standoff. After a moment or two of straight faces they broke into laughter. When the laughter died down they were still staring at each other intently. In the blink of an eye the mood shifted. Awkwardly, Nico looked away as Julia did the same while brushing a strand of hair from her face.

"Um Nico," Julia mused.

"Yeah?"

"I was thinking."

"Like always."

Julia ignored the comment. "I didn't really get a chance to thank you."

"For what?" Nico asked quizzically.

"You know, for being there for me when no one else was. I wasn't exactly at the top of my game when we first met because of that concussion I had and the amnesia syndrome. That was, um, really nice of you," she said shyly.

Nico got the feeling she didn't thank many people often. She was more on the receiving end.

"Oh that," Nico said shaking his head. "That was nothing."

"But still..." Julia insisted. The two made eye contact again and Julia placed her hand on top of his. Her had hand was warm to the touch which caused his stomach to somersault and his cheeks to grow warm.

"Listen Nico, I'm going to level with you.I'm with you to the end and if things go sour, I'll be there."

Nico nodded and Tyler barked which caused them both to jump.

"Yeah, yeah, you too buddy," Julia said scratching Tyler's belly again.

"Oh there you three are!" Hazel said from behind them. She was joined by Frank.

Julia retracted her hand from Nico's quickly and the two snapped their heads towards the newcomers.

"Sup sis?" Nico said quickly. "The funeral over?"

"Yeah, it just finished." Hazel told them. "It was sad but kind of beautiful at the same time. It showed me how bittersweet death really is."

"You sound like the nuns," Julia commented as if reminiscing times long ago.

"What?" Hazel asked.

"Nothing," Julia said quickly.

"Can we join you?" Frank wondered.

"I don't see why not," Julia answered without hesitation.

"How about two more?" Jason added with his arm around Piper.

Nico shot Julia a glare and whispered in her ear, "See what you've done?"

Julia snorted and whispered back, "I forgot, you Hades boys like being on your lonesome. You're not fooling anyone Nico di Angelo. Admit it, you like people."

Before Nico could offer a witty rejoinder the rest of his friends arrived like clockwork. Annabeth and Percy were next to arrive, then Chris and Clarisse, and of course the rest followed like sheep but they were a cute and cuddly flock, so he didn't mind.

"I thought I would find you guys here!" Leo exclaimed walking up last. He blew out a puff of air. "Boy, that was weird, talking to the dead. I was glad to see them all one last time and give them a proper goodbye...but it just didn't feel right."

"Like we were messing with things that shouldn't be messed with," Frank offered.

"Tell me about it," Percy said in agreement.

Nico glanced a look at his half-sister and he knew by her expression she understood all to well the conflict of dead and living.

Leo shivered, "Very creepy but kinda of nice." Leo may have fooled the others but not Nico. Jason and Medea told him things, certain things, and by the look on Leo's face, what they told him, scared him.

The Stoll brothers generously passed out bottles of Coca-Cola that the group of kids sipped on slowly thinking about the funeral.

"To the fallen!" Thalia said raising her coke bottle.

"Here, here!" everyone else responded.

"Oh by the way congratulations Operative di Angelo!" Percy added.

"Here, here!" everyone else agreed.

"No," Nico corrected them, "to us for pulling out the win. 20,000 evil bastards in the pit and another few million to go."

"Here, here!" everyone concurred.

For a while the group of friends sat in silence watching the sunset, drinking coke, and rocking out to classic rock covers played by Will Solace on his guitar. They thought about their fallen friends and the memories they shared with them. The couples like Annabeth and Percy, or Piper and Jason, who were lucky enough to have each other snuck in loving kisses.

Then Piper asked a question that she had already asked a few hours before. "So what now?"

Their answer came from behind them. It was Achilles and the remainder of the Heroes of Old. They appeared to be glowing in the half moon and half sun light. They looked almost godly. What ever was causing them pain before they had clearly beaten it. It was if they had all bathed in the River Styx recently and were washed of all their past sins. Although Achilles limped from his broken ankle, Hercules was covered in bite marks and his head was bandaged, Perseus was in crutches, and the rest were suffering from other injuries, they seemed stronger than ever.

"I say tonight we feast, celebrate, and bask in the glory of our recent victory, and then tomorrow we prepare for the final war that will end all wars. We set sail to the fatherland, raise a little hell, and kill some evil sons of bitches; and if we die in the process at least we knew we went down swinging," bellowed Coach Hedge trotting next them while chewing on his coke bottle.

"Exactly," Hercules shouted excitedly. "We stand and fight!"

"Who's with us?" Achilles said rousing the young warriors with a thundering voice.

Odysseus saluted professionally.

Theseus nodded solemnly.

"Aye sir," said Perseus.

"Why not?" Aeneas put in.

Orion gave a humble bow.

"Count us in," said Romulus and Remus mischievously in unison.

"Anyone want to bet I kill the most monsters?" smiled Atalanta.

"Amen to that!" Clarrise said raising her bottle into the air.

Everyone else followed her example and clinked bottles together in a toast. The sun had fully set, the moon high in the night sky, and the constellations painting the void. Tyler Horace the werewolf looked to the heavens and let loose a howl.

"AHOO! AHOO!"

* * *

><p><em>How humorous, the puny mortals think they can actually win. The small victory they have achieved is nothing compared to what I have in store for them. They have set a dangerous precedent. My war machine is ever turning, my army is vast, and the flames of the forge rises. The fire is rising…every rising.<em>

**TO BE CONTINUED IN THE SEQUEL**


	27. OCs, Bonus Chapters, Stories

**What's up guys, just wanted to let you know I'm working on that sequel. I'm still in the thinking process and not so much of the writing process but it's on the way. However, in order to reach the final goal I need your guys' help. **

**First order of business:I need OCs (original characters). Instead of wasting space on the PJO archive I have decided to include an OC submission into my story. If you would like to submit an OC, either leave a review on this fic or send me a PM. **

**What will these OCs be used for? I understand many of your characters are important to you and you don't want to see their potential go to waste. I'm going to give them a very important job. They make up the bulk of my International League of Heroes. Think of this as "Create your own ILH Operative.**

**What info you'll need to include:**

**Godly p****arent**

**Their origin**

(nation, city, upbringing, language etc.)

**personality**

(hobbies, beliefs, mottos, codes, moral views, humor etc.)

**fighting style **

(note: each ILH operative is an emulation of their nation's greatest warriors i.e Greece: Spartan; Japan: Samurai)

**special weapon**

(i.e. a British knight would wield Excalibur or a samurai a katana, a middle easter warrior would have a scimitar, a viking a battle axe)

**physical appearance**

(height, eye color, hair style and color, weight, posture etc.)

**GO NUTS!**

* * *

><p><strong>Also, I still need a title.<strong>

**What I have so far:**

**Heroes of Olympus**

**The Heroes of New**

**The Rising**

**You can vote on what you like or feel free to submit your own!**

* * *

><p><strong>Last order of business is my plans for the future. This includes ideas for the sequel, future stories by me, and bonus chapters. You guys vote on these or submit your own.<strong>

**Bonus Chapters:**

**During the funeral ceremony in the last chapter the living Heroes of Old reunite with the dead ones. THIS ONE IS DEFINITELY HAPPENING!**

**A one-shot about Julia and Tyler while they were on the run in Europe.**

**A one-shot about Tyler while he is on a mission when he was still an ILH operative.**

**A one-shot about the ILH while they were making their way to Death's Doors to aid the Argonauts.**

**Sequel Ideas:**

**A battle royal between gods, giants, demigods, and pretty much everything in the PJO and HLO universe.**

**MORE STUFF YOU WANT TO SEE!**

**Future Story Ideas:**

**I've always wanted to do an Inception like story about Clovis (son of Morpheus, god of sleep) where he enters other demigods dreams and saves them from monsters. Has similar Inception themes live reality vs. dream and James Bond type action.**

**A spinoff story based of the ILH it's self. It explains the history of the League, it's members and operatives, missions that it's operatives have completed, and basically life of an ILH operative on Mt. Olympus. Most of all, it will answer the question that has been on my mind that I've wanted to answer. What was the ILH's role during the Titan War against Kronos and how did the ILH respond to the god silence. **

* * *

><p><strong>So, that's basically what I have planned. For all your ideas you can either PM or leave a review on this story. I will also have several polls on my profile that you can vote on. I can't wait to here your guys' ideas! <strong>


	28. Another Update

**Sup, guys. Guess what I just did? I completely revised this entire story. I tried to catch most of my grammatical errors and added in descriptive details and changed some things. For example Kiyoshi Hanzo is now a son of Nemesis and not one of Nyx. You don't have to read the story again but if you want to I would highly advice it to further enhance your reading experience. **

**This update is current to the date of 6/17/11**

* * *

><p><strong>ILH Operative submission still open.<strong>

**What info you'll need to include:**

**Godly p****arent**

(preferably minor gods)

**Their origin**

(nation, city, upbringing, language etc.)

**personality**

(hobbies, beliefs, mottos, codes, moral views, humor etc.)

**fighting style**

(note: each ILH operative is an emulation of their nation's greatest warriors i.e Greece: Spartan; Japan: Samurai)

**special weapon**

(i.e. a British knight would wield Excalibur or a samurai a katana, a middle easter warrior would have a scimitar, a viking a battle axe)

**physical appearance**

(height, eye color, hair style and color, weight, posture etc.)

**GO NUTS!**


End file.
